The Beginning
by SofiaBarbara
Summary: Delyia has had a hard life. Her parents were killed when she was twelve, and she lives with her Godparents, Judy and Ron Witwicky. Along with their son and her best friend Sam. However, once Sam gets his new car, things start to change, again. Are they for the best or not? Only time will tell. OP/OC *I do not own anything from transformers but my OC, and the minor changes in plot.*
1. Chapter 1

All I remember from that day were the blinding police lights, men in uniform taking me out of class, and for the first time seeing the deceased bodies of people I loved. They told me,

"Your parents died because of an experiment they were working on, it went wrong and they sacrificed themselves so it wouldn't get out of control. Your parents were very brave people, I'm sorry for your loss."

So cold and non-understanding, the police officer never let his emotions peek out from his stoic mask; if he felt any at all. I was twelve and unable to take care of myself. My parents never had siblings, so I was sent to live with my Godparents, Ron and Judy Witwicky, along with their son (and my best friend), Sam. They gave me comfort, a home, and helped me heal from the loss of my own parents. Now me and Sam are on the verge of graduating High School, and everything is about to change, again.

"Sam! Move your ass otherwise we're going to be late!" I screamed as I ran out the door.

Jumping in my baby, a Toyota Corolla, and starting the car, I waited. I glanced in the mirror, my acid green eyes ringed with black eyeliner, my slick black hair fanned around my face. _It's too hot for my hair to be down,_ I sighed and strung it back in a ponytail. Sam jumped in the car and I sped off.

"Sam you have everything you need for history class today?" I glanced over at him.

He rummaged through his bag and pulled out a separate bag, which I assumed had everything he needed.

"Yup, It's all in here."

Turning on the radio, P!nk started to blast, Same made a disgusted face.

"What?" I laughed, "too mainstream?"

He nodded and switched it, we jammed out all the way to school. Walking up to the school Sam sighed,

"I can't wait to get my car. I can't believe you got a car before me!"

"well, I made straight A's and paid for three-fourths of my car! While you were making straight C's for the longest time." I replied.

"W-Well, whatever Delyia! I'll see you in history." He darted off to class.

Walking to class, I checked my phone; as I picked it up, a little electric current flowed through me. I screeched and dropped my phone, earning a few stares from people in the hallway. Quickly gaining my composure, I shakily grabbed my phone and hurried to class.

At the end of the day, I met up with Sam before history. He quickly went through his family geneology project with me and he wasn't focusing on what he needed to get an A.

"Sam you can't constantly ask them to buy your stuff, focus more on facts and things like tha- are you listening to me?"

I saw the glazed look in his eye and turned around, Mikaela strutting down the hallway and glided into class with her half-brained boyfriend. Rolling my eyes, I patted Sam on the head and walked into class, going to my seat near the back. The bell rang and a few students went through their projects, nodding me off to sleep.

"Okay, Mr. Witwicky, you're up." The teacher announced, at the sound of my best friends name I sat up straight in my seat.

"Sorry I got a lot of stuff." He mumbled as he poured out a lot of what seemed like junk.

I heard some whispers in class and suddenly Sam's neck was hit with a paper taco; the teacher bolted up from his seat,

"Who – Who did that? People! Responsibility!" He sat back down and let Sam continue, whilst I glared at my classmates.

"So, for my family genealogy report, I decided to do it on my great-great-grandfather, who was a famous man, Captain Archibald Witwicky. Very famous explorer. In fact, he was one of the first to explore the Arctic Circle, which is a big deal. In 1897, he took 41 brave sailors straight into the Arctic Shelf. So that's the story, right? And here we have some of the basic instruments and tools used by 19th-century seamen – "

The class abrupt into laughter, I rolled my eyes and the teacher put up his stupid "QUIET" sign.

"This here is the quadrant, which you can get for 80 bucks. It's all for sale, by the way. Like the sextant here. 50 for this, which is a bargain. These are pretty cool. These are my grandfather's glasses. I haven't quite gotten them appraised yet, but they've seen many cool things – "

"Are you going to sell me his liver? This isn't show and sell Mr. Witwicky, This is the 11th grade and I don't think your grandfather would be particularly proud of what you're doing."

"I know I know, I'm sorry, but. I just, you know, this is all going towards my car fund. You can tell your folks it's on eBay, I take PayPayl. Cold hard cash works too. And the compass makes a great gift for Columbus Day!"

"SAM!" the teacher yelled,

_I warned him,_ I sighed and continued to watch Sam drown in embarrassment, an uneasy feeling in the stomach,

"Sorry, Unfortunately, my great-great-grandfather, the genius that he was, wound up going blind and crazy in a psycho ward. Drawing these strange symbols and blabbing about some giant ice man that he thought he'd discovered – "

The bell rang signaling the end of class,

"Sam I'll see you after work okay? Good luck with your car."

I hugged him and headed to my own car, changing into my work clothes. Working at a car shop wasn't my first choice, but I liked learning about cars, even though I didn't know much. I just handled the register, and maybe if one of the workers needed someone to hand them tools, then I'd help with the cars. Work that day went by pretty fast, only a few cars came in and I was allowed to leave early. Speeding home, I felt butterflies fly in my stomach, I couldn't wait to see Sam's car. As I pulled into the drive way, I saw Sam talking to his parents, and an old rusty camaro sitting in my cars spot. The yellow was faded in places and black almost grey racing striped were painted down the middle. I pulled up next to it and got out of the car quickly inspecting it. I loved the car.

"SAM!" I squealed as I continued to look around, "This is the cutest car ever! I love it, how'd you find something like this for four grand!"

I whirled around and shook Sam, excitement bubbling over,

"You like it?" Sam asked, surprised at my reaction.

"Yes! I love it! Can we go out for a drive?" I ran over to the car and laid on the hood, I almost though the car rumbled underneath me.

Then the radio started playing, _I'm so excited, and I just can't hide it! – And you're my best friend – _

Sam immediately ran over to the car and tried to shut off the radio, I jumped off the car,

"Sam, does your radio turn on by itself? That's kinda cool, I mean, you don't ever have to take your eyes off the road!"

"It does, but I don't think I like it, this car has some kinks that need to be worked out sometime." He sighed and motioned me to get in the car as he slipped in the driver seat. I jumped into the passenger seat, Sam coughed.

"Uh, Delyia, don't get mad, but I'm bringing Miles to this party, and you – "

"Alright Alright, I'll sit in the back, but only cause you asked." I crawled into the back seat and the radio static hummed,

_Your family should always be your number one, hallelujah ! – _

"Stupid radio, do you see what I mean by kinks?" he groaned.

"Sam, it's not a problem, if you want you can come by the shop and we can see what we can do. I'll get you a discount or something." I sprawled out in the back seat.

As soon as Miles jumped into the car he chatted animatedly the whole drive; halfway through an headache throbbed in the back of my brain, so I dozed off into sleep to escape Miles' talk.

When I woke up, we were parked and Miles was climbing up a tree, the radio static hummed up again and played,

_Stupid girl, stupid girls, stupid girl – _

I busted out in laughter and ran over to Sam,

" – researching a book I was writing." Sam said. _Oh no._

"Oh yeah, what's it about? Sucking at sports?" Mikaela's boyfriend snickered.

"No, it's about the link between brain damage and football, no! It's a good book, your friend will love it! You know, it's got mazes in and little colouring areas, sections, pop-up pictures it's a lot of fun."

"That's funny." He snarled at Sam and stepped forward, fists balled.

"Hey! You leave him alone you big idiot." I snapped, stepping in front of Sam.

"You stay out of this you stupid girl, maybe that's why your parents killed themselves. It was because they couldn't stand to see your ugly face everyday!" He growled.

Anger rose up inside me and steamed, my joints ached to throw punches and kicks. Instead, I grabbed him by the collar and forced his face to level with mine,

"You _ever_ say anything like that again, I'll make sure you wake up the next day with missing limbs." I let his shirt go and Mikaela ran up pushing him away.

I stormed off to the car and curled up in the back seat; Sam was busy trying to get Miles out of a tree. I fought back tears, but they won the war and salty droplets fell from my eyes. I went to wipe them away, but more only fell in their place. The radio switched on and it played, - you've got a friend in me, you've got a friend in me, - It switched off as Sam raced to the car, Miles not following. He jumped in the back seat and held me, whispering things I wasn't paying attention to.

"Are you alright?" Sam asked, worry etched on his face.

I nodded, "Yeah I'm fine Sammy, It just caught me off guard is all."

He sighed and patted me on the head, giving me one more hug he jumped in the front seat.

"Is it okay if I give Mikaela a ride home? I think she just broke up with that guy."

"Why are you asking me? Of course you can. What about Miles?"

"If I took Miles, he'd mess everything up before it began."

"Very true."

He sped up to catch up with Mikaela and asked her if she wanted a ride. Eyes heavy, I fell into a dreamless sleep, only to be woken by the radio blasting some romantic song and the sun blaring in my eyes.

"where are we?"

I asked, however neither of them were paying attention to me, Sam was busy blabbing apologies and Mikaela was getting out of the car, getting ready to look at it. Both me and Sam got out after her and she popped open the hood, taking a look at the engine.

"Whoa you've got a high-rise double-pump carburetor, that's pretty impressive Sam." Mikaela gasped.

"Double-pump?" Sam asked.

"It squirts the fuel in so you can go faster." I interrupted.

"You know about cars?" Mikaela looked at me with surprise.

"Yeah, a little, I work at an auto-shop so I sort of have to know a little bit." I smiled.

Sam staring at Mikaelas body, practically drooled and mumbled,

"I like to go faster."

"How do you know about cars?" I asked her, ignoring Sams comment,

"Yeah, how'd you know that?" He repeated.

"My dad, He was a real grease monkey. He taught me all about this. I could take it all apart, clean it, put it back together." She awkwardly smiled.

"I just wouldn't peg you for mechanical." He turned away and put his hand in his mouth.

"Guys don't like it when you know more about cars than they do. Especially not Trent. He hates it." She sighed.

"Yeah, no, I'm cool with it. I prefer it actually, you know, females working on my engine."

"Okay." She continued, "You want to fire it up for me?"

_This is so awkward._ I shivered, not interested in being around the two of them I climbed back into the back seat watching them chat for a few before Mikaela sighed and went to grab her purse,

" I think I'm just going to walk, it was nice meeting you…" She looked at me, with an awkward stare.

"Delyia." I smiled.

"It was nice meeting you, See you guys at school." She walked away from the car.

"Oh god, no, no, no, no, no." Sam stuttered as he tried to fix his car. _I can't believe this is happening._ I thought as the car roared to life.

He drove after Mikaela and she reluctantly got back into the car. Sam drove up to her house and shut off the engine.

"There it is." He smiled.

"I had fun. So you know, thanks for listening." She smiled back at Sam.

_They're so totally into each other._ I grinned from the back.

"Oh yeah yeah." He gave her an awkward smile.

"You … you think I'm shallow don't you?" She frowned.

"I think you're, no no no! I think there is a lot more than meets the eye, with you."

"Okay." She replied, getting out of the car. "I'll see you at school." She waved at me and walked to her house.

"Wow Sam, that was the worst pick-up line. Ever." I snorted and jumped in the front seat.

"I know, it was so stupid!" he groaned, banging his head on the steering wheel, "Oh God, Oh my God, I love my car." He hugged the dashboard and grinned like an idiot.

"yeah your car is pretty cool." I grinned as he drove us home.


	2. Chapter 2

"Delyia! Delyia wake up! My car's being stolen!" Sam yelled as he shook me awake.

"What..?" I questioned, rubbing sleep from my eyes.

"C'mon!" he grabbed my hand and pulled me from bed, "Dad! Call the cops!"

We ran outside to see the Camaro driving out of the driveway, with no one in it. Sam and I grabbed our bikes and rode after it; whoever was stealing it, wasn't driving very fast. We were neck and neck with it as it drove on. Sam hastily dialed 9-1-1 as we continued to pursue.

"Hello? 911 emergency! My car has been stolen! I'm in pursuit! I need all units! The whole squadron, bring everyone! No, don't ask me questions all right? My father's the head of the neighborhood watch!"

He hung up and we followed the car to the outskirts of the city. We ditched our bikes and followed the car behind the abandoned warehouse.

"Where are we Sam?"

"I-I don't know.." his eyes widened and he pointed, his body shaking.

The camaro was transforming , wheels turning, parts shifting, changing places. Standing a few yards away, was a giant alien robot. My body felt like it was in a trance as I watched the robots shine a light into the sky, a symbol that seemed so strange yet familiar shone against the cloud. Sam ducked down and when I didn't follow, pulled me down as well. heturned on his cell phone, video taping himself. Whispering, he spoke,

"My name is Sam Witwicky, whoever finds this, my car is alive – " he held his phone up to record the robot, "Okay? You saw that? Since this is my last words on Earth, I just wanna say, Mom, Dad, I love you and if you find the Bust Beauties underneath my bed, it was mine. I'm holding it for Miles. No, no wait that – that isn't true. It mine and Uncle Charles gave it to me. Mojo, I love you." He put his cell phone away and continued to gawk at the robot.

"Sam," I shakily whispered, " I think we should get out of here."

He nodded and we snuck off, watching for anything that was following us. My ears picked up a growl and both Sam and I saw, to our horror, two vicious guard dogs, barring their teeth at us.

"G-good dogs," we stuttered out and back up.

When the dogs took a few steps forward, we dashed off in the other directions, the dogs following close behind. I led Sam into a section of the warehouse and we jumped up on high ground, the dogs barking and snarling, trying to get a taste of our legs. Suddenly, one of the walls were impaled and Sam's camaro busted in, scaring the dogs away and circling around us.

"Great! Now instead of killer dogs, we have a killer car trying to eat us!" I screamed shaking Sam.

Sam pushed me off and started screaming at the car,

"I'm sorry! Take the keys, I don't want them! Car's yours!" He threw the keys at the car.

The car only revved its engine and watched Sam curiously, did he seriously just hand the robot car the keys? Then the police showed up, sirens blaring, and men in uniform flooding out with guns yelling "Hands up!"

"Good you're here!" Sam sighed in relief.

"Let me see your hands both of you!" He ordered us.

"NO wait you have it all wro- "

"Shut up! Walk towards the car!" He interrupted me, Sam and I followed orders.

"Put your head on the hood!" he barked.

_Fuck._ I groaned.

"Look," Sam spat, "I can't be any clearer than how crystal clear I am being, It just stood up."

"It just stood up," The cop looked at me and I just nodded, "Wow that's really need."

"Okay chiefie," I growled

"What are you rolling?" he asked. "Whippets? Goofballs? A little wowie sauce with the boys?"

"We are not on drugs!" I huffed.

"What're these?" He asked with a smirk plastered on his greasy face.

"Is that what kids are doing now? Mojo?" he asked again.

"Those are my dog's pain pills, You know a Chihuahua? A little.." Sam's eyes trailed to the cops gun and the cop stood up, grinning.

"You eyeballing my piece, 50 cent? You wanna go? Make something Happen. Do it. 'Cause I promise you, I will bust you up." He slammed his fist on the table.

"Are you on drugs?" I asked him.

Dad ended up bailing us both out and we went home to rest up. The next morning I received a phone call from Mikaela, she wanted me to meet her for lunch so we could talk, I asked about what but she wouldn't tell me. I threw on some khaki shorts and a tshirt, letting my hair flow freely and wearing minimal make-up. Grabbing my keys I headed out, telling Sam I was meeting up with a friend for lunch. I knew if I told him about who I was meeting he'd want to go to, and Mikaela probably wanted to talk about Sam; so that wouldn't work. Arriving at the restaurant I sat across from her and proceeded to make small talk for a bit, but soon an awkward silence settled over us. I was glad we sat outside then so I could observe things going on around us instead of having to sit with just her.

"So," I started, "What did you really want to talk about with me?"

"Well what's Sam's deal?" She boldly asked,

"huh?" I asked, confused.

"Does he have a girlfriend? Is he interested in dating or what?" She asked twiddling her thumbs.

"Ohhh… No, he doesn't have a girlfriend and I'm sure he is interested in dating. Why do you – "

"Oh no!" she waved her hands wildly, " A friend of mine thinks he's cute."

I eyed her suspiciously and nodded, not too long after I spotted Sam riding his mothers pink bicycle, only to do a flip and land hard on his back,

"S-sam!" Mikaela called, "That was, uh, awesome?" she smiled.

"It felt awesome," he muttered.

"What's going on Sam?" I questioned.

"Deylia? What're you doing here? You didn't tell me you were going to meet – Nevermind! I'm being chased by my car I have to go."

He yelled as he took off, I started after him but Mikaela yelled at me saying she had a ride. We both jumped on her Mo-ped and took off after Sam. He led us to a parking lot with empty abandoned cars, and his yellow camaro following close behind. A cop car showed up and Sam jumped on its hood, yelling something to him, Mikaela and I hid behind trash heaps, watching Sam. The cop car threw Sam off and kept moving closer and closer. I ran to Sam and picked him up, trying to get him to run. We took off running, but before we could get to Mikaela, I looked back to see if the cop car was following us. The cop car had transformed into a large silvery-metal robot, with radiating red eyes and sharp teeth. He roared and strange sounds flowed from it's mouth as it grabbed me and Sam and slammed us onto a car.

"Are you username LadiesMan217? Are you username ladiesMan217!" he screamed at us.

"Y-Yes!" Sam choked out.

"Where is eBay item 21153?" he demanded.

"What?" I asked.

He analyzed me and cocked his head sideways,

"What are- Where are the glasses?" he stopped short and continued to yell at Sam.

The robot loosed its grip and that's the chance me and Sam took to make our escape. We ran as hard and fast as our legs would carry us, the metal robot hot on our trail. We made it to Mikaela and the camaro zoomed out between us and the robot, sliding underneath him causing the robot to trip. The camaro stopped in front of us and Sam shoved all of us into the car. The car took off, leaving the robot in the dust. The other robot turned back into a police car and followed, dashing through old buildings and roads, trying to lose the robot, but the camaro couldn't shake him.

"We're gonna die!" I screamed hysterically, Mikaela followed suit.

"No we're not gonna die!" Same screamed back, but as the camaro drove through a glass wall, Sam screamed as if he were 12 again and hadn't his puberty,

"We're gonna die! Oh my God! We're gonna die!"

Finally the camaro slipped into an alleyway and shut off its lights. The 'police car' drove past us and we all sighed in relief. Mikaela tried to open the door but it was locked, Sam tried turning on the car but it refused to start.

"At least we diched the monster, right?" I asked nervously.

The camaro roared to life and we all screamed as it sped away leading the police car away, back to another warehouse somewhere else. The camaro threw us out of the car and transformed into the robot from the yesterday, the police car transformed into the robot from earlier. The yellow robot tackled the other robot in a clash of sparks and fire as metal scraped metal. The other robot dropped something silvery and shiney and it quickly changed into a little silver robot and it ran towards us. Screaming Sam and I dashed away as it chased us. Mikaela picked up something, I couldn't tell and ran after us. Pinned against a chain-link fence Sam and I stood, holding each other and yelling. Mikaela ran up and whacked the robot with the tool she picked up, she stabbed the creature over and over until it lay on the ground, twitching and torn apart.

"Not so tough without a head, are you?" she spat and Sam kicked its head away.

"Here, come on!" I yelled as we ran up the hill.

The robot that chased us was gone and Sam's car's robot was left. It walked up to us and smiled, or seemed to smile.

"What is it?" Mikaela asked, panting.

"Its – It's a robot." I managed to breathe out.

"It's like a, like a super-advanced robot. It's probably Japanese." Sam said as he moved closer to the robot.

"What are you doing?" Mikaela seethed.

"I don't think it wants to hurt us. It would have done that already." He replied.

"Really?" she snorted, "Well do you speak robot because they just had like a giant droid death match."

"I think it wants something from me." Sam whispered.

"What?" Mikaela groaned.

Having enough I ran up to the yellow robot,

"Can you talk?" I asked him, it seemed like a him.

"XM satellite Radio – Digital cable brings you – Colombia broadcasting system – " he chimed.

"So, you talk through the radio?" I clarified.

"Thank you, you're beautiful, you're wonderful, you're wonderful." He clapped his hands.

"So, what was that last night?" Sam stepped up and asked.

"Yeah, what was that?" I repeated.

"Messafe from Starfleet captain – Through the inanimate vastness of space – angels will rain down like visitors from heaven! Hallelujah!" he animatedly danced around, pointing at the sky.

"So you're what?" Sam stuttered, confused.

"Are you like an alien or something?" Mikaela spoke up.

He nodded and transformed back into the camaro, honking.

"He wants us to get in the car." I answered for him.

"And go where?" Mikaela asked.

"Fifty years from now, when you're looking back at your life, don't you want to be able to say you had the guts to get in the car?" Sam asked as I got into the back seat.

We all piled in as the car took us to where ever he was taking us.

"Your car is a pretty good driver," Mikaela commented.

"I know." Sam replied.

"Why don't you sit in the other seat?" I asked Mikaela.

"I'm not sitting in that seat, he's driving." She replied, her voice wavering.

'"yeah." I agreed.

"Well, maybe you should sit in my lap?" Sam told her.

"Why?"

"Well, I have the only seat belt here. You know, safety first."

_Smooth._ I grinned.

"Yeah alright." Mikaela agreed and moved to sit in his lap, "You know," she continued, "That seat belt thing was a pretty smooth move."

Sam grinned, "Thank you."

"You know what I don't understand?" Mikaela asked after a few seconds.

"What?" Sam and I replied.

"Why, if he's supposed to be like this super-advanced robot, does he transform back into this piece-of-crap Camaro?" she asked.

The car came to a screeching halt as Sam and Mikaela were thrown out. I was thrown out, probably because I was in the back seat and it's hard to throw someone out from the back seat. The car drove away leaving Sam and Mikaela standing on the side of the highway.

"U-uhm excuse me Mr. Robot, why are we leaving Sam and Mikaela?" I asked.

However I received no response. The car suddenly turned sideways and I was thrown against the window. I screamed and attempted to compose myself as a blue light scanned a car driving by, as he scanned the car, I felt a tingling feeling spread through my whole body like little torn pricking my every skin cell. He flipped back onto his four-wheels and suddenly, it was a whole new car. The leather seats, new radio, glowing controls, I breathed in awe and ran my hands against the leather. The car skidded to a halt in front of Mikaela and Sam, opening its door. With shock written all over their faces they jumped in the car, if the inside looked as magnificent as the outside, I'd fall in love with this car.

We'd been driving all afternoon and finally came to a halt in a large alleyway. All of us stepped out of the Camaro and watched as more cars drove into the alleyway. One a large semi, with electric blue and fire painted of its shining body, another, a yellow emergency vehicle with it lights flashing, a grey cadillac and finally a sleek GMC truck. Mouth watering I watched as all these cars pulled into the alley.

"What the – "

Before I uttered another word, the cars started to transform, all into robots. The Semi seemed to be the leader of the group as he stepped forward and knelt so he was leveled with us.

"Are you Samuel James Witwicky? Descendant of Archibald Witwicky?"

"They know your name." I whispered to Sam.

"Y-Yeah." He croaked.

"My name, is Optimus Prime." He monotonous voice boomed.

"We are autonomous robotic organisms from the planet cybertron."

"But you can call us Autobots for short." The medic spoke.

"Autobots.." Sam and I whispered.

"What's cracking little bitches?" The Cadillac started to break dance. Optimus spoke up again,

"My firs lieutenant, Designation jazz."

"This looks like a cool place to kick it." Jazz laid on another car.

"What is that? – " Sam started but I interrupted him,

"How did he learn to talk like that?"

Optimus' sharp, electric blue eyes were now focused on me; they sent waves of warmth and security through me. I felt as though I was under a microscope and he was examining me. He seemed to be almost confused, but thought better of saying anything and continued to answer my question.

"We've learned Earth's languages through the World Wide Web.

"My weapons specialist, Ironhide." Optimus pointed to the GMC.

Ironhide's hands transformed into thick, huge cannons and he directed them right at us. I hid behind Sam,

"You feeling lucky, punk?" Ironhide smirked.

"Easy Ironhide." Optimus warned.

"Just kidding," Ironhide backed down, his arms twisting back to normal, "I just wanted to show them my cannons."

"Our medical officer, Ratchet." Optimus looked to the medical truck.

"The boy's pheromone levels suggests he wants to mate with the blue eyed female." Ratchet pointed out.

I snickered, Sam and Mikaela glanced around awkwardly trying to avoid eye contact. Ratchets eyes met mine and a red beam scanned over my body.

"W-What is he doing?" Sam freaked out.

"He's doing a scan of Delyia's body." Optimus answered,

_How does he know my name?_ I thought, a little giddy and scared of him knowing things about me.

"Hmm.. Strange." Ratchet mumbled.

"What is it?" I probed, "Is there something wrong?"

"No no. Nothing." He turned away from me.

Optimus coughed and continued to speak,

"And you already know your guardian, Bumblebee."

"Bumblebee, how fitting." I smiled.

"Bumblebee, right?" Sam turned to the Camaro.

The Camaro nodded, " – Check on the rep, yep, second to none!"

"So you're my guardian huh?"

Bee nodded and smiled.

"His vocal processors were damaged in battle, I'm still working on them." Ratchet mumbled and he scanned Bee.

"Why are you here?" I boldly asked.

"We are here looking for the All Spark. And we must find it before Megatron." Optimus replied.

"Mega-what?" Sam and I spoke.

"Our planet was once a powerful empire, peaceful and just; until we were betrayed by Megatron, leader of the Decepticons. All who defied them were destroyed. Our war finally consumed the planet and the All Spark was lost to the stars. Megatron followed it to Earth where Captain Witwicky found him." Optimus explained.

"My grandfather.." Sam gasped.

"It was an accident that intertwined our fates. He accidentally activated Megatrons' navigation system. The coordinated to the Cube's location on Earth were imprinted on his glasses." Optimus finished.

"How'd you know about the glasses though?" I asked.

"Ebay." Optimus answered."If the Decepticons find the All Spark, they will use its power to transform Earth's machines and build a new army. And the human race will be extinguished." Optimus Prime stood, looking down at us, his blue eyes bold and serious, "Sam Witwicky, you hold the key to Earth's survival."

"Sam, please tell me you have those glasses." Mikaela worriedly asked.


	3. Chapter 3

**hey guys, thank you to everyone who read my story, Favorited it and followed it! (: you're all the best! I went back and fixed the errors in the last two chapters, i re-read them and realized there were a lot of mistakes! But, it should all be taken care of now. However, i would like to ask if you would review my story so i can see where you all stand with it. if you guys have any ideas you'd want to run by me i'd love that too! Just a thought, it'd be really helpful you did! Enjoy!**

The Autobots all agreed we'd much safer if we rode in Optimus, so Bee would be available to transform and attack, _just in case_. I had to admit, I felt a little uncomfortable riding _inside_ any of them. So many questions buzzed around in my head: _Can we trust what these 'Autobots' say? Are they safe, do they really mean us no harm? What are we going to tell our parents? (There's going to be 5 brand new cars sitting in our backyard) How long can we keep this hidden until the government finds out? Since we get inside them to drive the car, does that mean we're __inside__ them or..? _My head started spinning and I slumped against the passenger seat.

"Are you feeling alright, Delyia?" the voice of Optimus flooded the interior of the truck.

I felt the eyes of Sam, Mikaela and Optimus,

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just tired." I attempted to smile; I must've looked strained, because both Sam and Mikaela looked at me worriedly.

"Are you sure?" they both ask me.

"Yes, guys, I'm really fine." I nestled my head against the window, "Wake me up when we get there." I mumbled before nodding off.

I was awoken, as asked, by Sam when we pulled up behind our home. Sam ordered both me and Mikaela to watch the Autobots and keep them here while he searched for the glasses. Mikaela and I awkwardly stood next to the five cars;

_Everyone knows we can't stop them if they really want to go after Sam, _I inwardly groaned.

As if hearing my thoughts, all the Autobots transformed and trudged into Sam's backyard. At first it was just Optimus and Bee that took the brave first step into our yard, I ran up to Sam, attempting to help distract our parents.

" – love you, so much right now." _What the fu-_ Bee attempted to get closer and I tried to discreetly wave him away as I jogged up to Sam.

"Hey Dad," I smiled, "How are you this fine evening?"

He raised his eyebrow, "Are you guys okay? Something is up, I can feel it. You guys aren't doing drugs are you?"

Both of us make a disgusted noise, "Aw Dad c'mon!" Sam yelled, "We are _not_ on drugs!"

"Yeah, Dad you raised us better than that." I nodded, agreeing.

"You know," he eyed us, "Mom wanted me to ground you."

"Just another thing you do for me!" Sam nodded.

"Because you're such a swell guy!" I added.

"One more thing huh?" He murmured before turning around to join Mom.

"All right I love you!" Sam yelled after him.

"Sleep good, handsome man!" I yelled before turning around and following Sam.

My body however, came into contact with a certain blue and red Autobot's extremely large foot.

"_Oof."_ I groaned as I fell to the ground.

He quickly attempted to delicately move away from me, but instead ended up crushing the path our parents had worked on; Sam all the while, was busy yelling at all of them.

"What are you doing? What are you doing? No, watch the path watch the pat- please!" Optimus, highly confused stepped back and crushed the fountain with his enormous heel, "No! Oh no!"

"Sorry, my bad." Optimus apologized, earning a snicker from me.

To hear a leader of an alien race utter our slang, it was hilarious. Optimus glanced at me with curiosity; before he could say anything, Sam pulled me and Mikaela aside,

"I told you to watch them! I told you –"

"Okay, you know what? They seem to be in a little bit of a rush!" Mikaela seethed.

"On no this is bad, no!" Sam squealed running around trying to control the robots.

I sighed, standing in the middle of the lawn, I whistled as loud as I could. It seemed to get the attention of everyone on the lawn; unprepared for all the attention, my face flushed beet red and I shuffled my feet around.

"Hey guys we need to- " That's when I noticed Mojo run up to Ironhide, "No Mojo - !"

It was too late; Mojo lifted up his leg and started to _pee_, earning a disgusted grunt from Ironhide as he shook his foot. He threw his cannons in Mojos face; Sam ran and grabbed the now terrified Chihuahua.

"Easy, easy!" Sam yelled, I ran in front of the both of them.

"This is Mojo," Sam continued, "He's a pet of mine."

"He's a pet okay, so could you please, just, put the guns away? Put the – Put them away. Please." I stuttered; the heat from the cannons warmed my entire body.

"You have a rodent infestation, Shall I terminate?" Ironhide grumbled.

"A what – No no, no, no, He's not a rodent, he's a Chihuahua!" Sam yelled from behind me, "This is my Chihuahua! We love Chihuahuas! Don't we?"

I nodded my head vigorously, "Yeah! Chihuahuas are good!"

"He's leaked lubricants all over my foot!" Ironhide retorted,

"He peed on you?" Sam questioned, "Bad Mojo, Bad Mojo!" Sam scolded the dog.

"Bad Mojo." Ironhide repeated.

I restrained myself from giggling and sputtered out, "I'm so sorry, He's got this male dominance thing – it's a small dog thing I think."

"My foot's gonna rust." Ironhide groaned and shook his foot again.

"Would – would you want me to grab a towel and clean it up for you?" I asked, not looking the giant robot in the eye.

"I would appreciate that." He mumbled.

Nodding I ran in the garage and grabbed a rag, hastily returning to Ironhide. I wiped up the little mess and tossed the rag in the trash,

"There all better." I gave Ironhide a small smile.

"Much appreciated." He grumbled and trudged away to Ratchet.

That's when I noticed I was all alone, outside, with five enormous alien-robots. Pressure kicked in and weighed heavily on my chest, I truly felt like an ant, compared to all of these 20 to 30 some feet robots; and to make matters worse, they were all staring at _me._ I shuffled around, trying to busy myself and make this less awkward. Ratchet was busy clicking away in, what I guessed was, his alien language, and Optimus seemed to be responding.

_What're they talking about?_ I wondered curiously.

Optimus knelt next to me and his blue, _optics_ as they're apparently called, lit my body in a blue-ish hue.

"Delyia," My name sounded so foreign coming from his metallic lips, "We think it is best you help Mikaela and Sam find the glasses. We don't have much time." He stressed the last sentence.

Nodding, I start to walk inside, but his giant hand is sprawled out on the grass in front of me. It took a moment for it to click in my brain, I stared up at him with fear, _he wants to lift me up with his hand._ Taking a moment to decide I decline the offer, I just met these robots; I don't think I'm ready to be man handled by them. Optimus, looking dejected, nods and moves away from me; I dash in the house and up the stairs. However Sam and Mikaela are already rummaging through Sam's room, so I decide to search mine. My room had large windows, stretching to cover an entire wall; the other three were adorned with sentimental items and posters. Sighing, I relax into my bed; however my relaxation quickly ended when I saw blue optics peering into my room. I opened a window and leaned out, Optimus' head was level with my own, making eye contact was nerve wracking, and I ended up staring at his chest plates.

"Delyia, you must help us find those glasses. The fate of the world rests in those glasses." He spoke urgently.

I sighed, I was so tired,

"But I didn't ask for this – "

Then, I looked around Optimus to see Ratchet tripping and falling all over the power lines, his sirens going off and he fell to the ground. I heard him groan and laugh; my eyes widened. Did he just – My gaze fell back to where Optimus was, but now he was busy with Sam. I heard our parent's yelling downstairs and running up the stairs, I dodged into Sam's room and shut the door.

"Sam! Rents are heading up the stairs as we speak!"

He seemed to send the robots away and scrambled around trying to hide Mikaela. Our parents were yelling about some nonsense from the other side of the door, I moved away to the corner of the room Mikaela was in, leaning against the window. Sam let his parents in and they started to yell at him, about how filthy he was and Sam started getting really defensive. As Sam and dad argued, me and mom looked at each other, I shrugged.

"Look you can't just barge into my room. You have to knock, you have to communicate." Sam stuttered.

"We knocked!" mom retorted.

"You didn't know you were screaming at me okay? This is repression what you're doing here. You're ruining my youth, okay?" Sam rambled.

"Oh, for Pete's sake!" Mom yelled, "You're being so defensive, were you, _masturbating_?"

Everyone else's eyes bulged and bore into Moms form, did she just say, _masturbating?_ I turned around and tried to choke back my laughter, but as they continued to argue I couldn't hold it in anymore and giggled like a maniac. None of them seemed to pay attention though; Dad started to look in the bathroom, yelling about earthquakes, then the ground rumbled again and he screamed like a girl. I heard some rustling in the bathroom and I ran in to see Dad huddled in the bathtub. Sighing I ran downstairs, if it's not in my room or Sam's, it _has_ to be downstairs. I tore apart our living room, porch etc. All the while Sam was being yelled at downstairs; I finally made it to the kitchen and spotted the bag lying on the counter. I nearly slapped myself for not coming here in the first place; as soon as I found the glasses Sam bounded down the stairs. I held them out for him to take and he delicately took them from my grasp, we all froze as we heard someone knock on the front door. _This better not be something stupid._ I peered around the corner, a ton of guys in police uniforms were crowded around the door talking to Dad. I ran back to the kitchen,

"Sam!" I hissed, "There are a million guys in uniform standing at our front door!"

Sam's face twisted into shock, he pulled Mikaela into the living room and I followed close behind.

"Your son filed a stolen car report last night. We think it's involved in a national security matter." A man with graying hair stood in front of the crowd of police.

"National security?" Dad asked incredulously.

"That's right, national security." The man nodded.

"My God, Ron, they're everywhere!" Mom gasped, coming to stand behind him, "There's guys in suits all around the house, look at this!"

"What is this?" Sam spoke up, with me and Mikaela coming forward with him.

"Is your name Sam?" the man asked him, and Sam nodded.

"And is your name Delyia?" he asked me; shocked I nodded but remained silent.

"Well I need you to come with me." The man stated, more police moving forward to cuff us.

"Whoa you're way out of line!" Dad shouted, standing in-between us and the police.

"You're not taking my son or my daughter!" Mom stood next to Dad.

"Sir, I am asking politely. Back off." The man said through gritted teeth.

"There's something fishy going on around here." Dad glared.

"Yeah," the man retorted, "There's something a little fishy about you, your son, your little Taco Bell dog and this whole operation you've got going on over here."

"What operation?" I snorted.

"That is what we are going to find out." He smirked.

"Son, girl?" he continued.

"Yeah?" Sam hesitantly replied.

"Step forward, please." Sam and I took a step forward.

Another strange man came up with some sort of walkie-talkie, meter object and held it in front of us. The object emitted a loud beeping or screeching sound.

"Fourteen rads," the man muttered, "bag 'em and tag 'em!" he screamed at his fellow police men.


	4. Chapter 4

S**Special Thanks to everyone that reviewed, favorited and followed! I love all of you for giving my story a chance! A super special thanks to my Beta, Bee4ever, you made this chapter the brilliance it is! More reviews would be appreciated! Thanks and enjoy! **

Agent Simmons, as I learned that's what his name was, led us into the stereotypical black SUV with tinted windows and locked us in the car. We drove in a long silence before he finally turned around and addressed Sam.

"So, LadiesMan217; That's your eBay username right?"

Mikaela looked at him in disbelief, Sam caught her eye and blushed bright red.

"Y-Yeah, but you know, it was a typo and I ran with it."

I glared hard at Simmons. _Who is this guy?_

"What do you make of this?" Simmons took out Sam's phone and started to play his voice recording from the other night.

"Is that you?" he asked, smirking.

"Yeah;" Mikaela leered. "That sounds like LadiesMan."

"Last night at the station, you both told an officer your car had transformed. Enlighten me." He said smugly.

_Okay, that is the last time I tell the police anything worthwhile._

"You see," I sighed, "My brothers – "

"But he isn't your real brother." Simmons pointed out.

" – car," I continued, ignoring his idiotic comment. "had been stolen from us; from our house."

"But it's fine now because it's back! It came back!" Sam added in.

_Stupid!_ If I could've choked Sam right then and there I would've.

"Well not by itself." I said, attempting to recover our secret.

"Yeah, because cars don't do that, because that would be crazy!" Mikaela chimed in, laughing awkwardly.

Everyone in the car let out forced or faux laughter. Simmons abruptly stopped and turned serious.

"So what do you kids know about aliens?"

"What?" I questioned; "You mean like a Martian? Like E.T.?"

I laughed and Mikaela butted in, "It's an urban legend."

"You see this?" He held up a badge. "This is I-can-do-whatever-I-want-and-get-away-with-it-badge." He smirked, "I'm gonna lock you all up forever."

"Oh God. Guys, don't listen to this freak show. He's just pissy because he has to go back to guarding the mall." Mikaela sneered.

"Listen up, Simmons. We don't know anything. I'm pretty sure it's against the law to hold us like this; so you better let us go or else you're in for a world of fucking _hurt!_" I glared hard. _I will not back down!_

"Hey! Both of you in the training bras; do not test me. Especially you!" he pointed at Mikaela. "With your daddy's parole coming up."

"What? Parole?" Sam shrieked.

"It's nothing." Mikaela tried to play it off.

"Oh grand theft auto? That ain't nothing?" Simmons snorted.

"You know those cars my dad used to teach me to fix? Well they, they weren't always his." She sighed.

"You stole cars?" Sam gasped. I could hit him for how hard he's being on her.

"We couldn't always afford a babysitter, so sometimes he had to take me along."

"She's got her own Juvi-record to prove it! She's a criminal, and criminals are hot!" Simmons grinned, eyeing Mikaela.

"Shut up!" I snarled at him.

The car came to a screeching halt and we were all jerked forward. I knocked my head against the window; a new throbbing pain spread through my skull. The windows broke, and large metal hands reached in and tore off the hood. We all looked up into a blinding light as towering fiery red and blue legs stood strong. Optimus flicked off the lights and loomed over all of us.

"You A-holes are in for it now!" Sam grinned.

"Guys," I directed my attention to Simmons and his friend. _What was_ his_name?_ "I'd like for you to meet our friend, Optimus Prime."

Optimus glared, his glowing blue optics hard. "Taking the children was a bad move. Autobots, relieve them of their weapons."

The rest of the Autobots swung out of nowhere and Jazz took all their weapons.

"Hi there." Simmons stood firm.

"You don't seem afraid," Optimus noticed. "Are you not surprised to see us?"

"Look, there are S-Seven protocols, okay? I'm not authorized to communicate with you, except to tell you I can't communicate with you."

"Get out of the car!" His voice boomed.

"Me? You want me to get – "

"Now!" Optimus yelled, Simmons and his friend scattered out of the car.

All the policemen from the other cars, including Simmons and that baldish guy, were all lined up on the street. Mikaela got me and Sam out of our handcuffs.

"You're good with handcuffs now too?" Sam snapped. I whacked him on the back of the head.

"Sam!" I gasped.

"You weren't supposed to hear all that." She admitted shamefully.

"Yeah." He snorted.

"Sam, I have a record because I wouldn't turn my dad in. When have you had to sacrifice anything in your perfect little life?" She replied, face hard.

"Big guys. Big guys with big guns, huh?" Simmons muttered, obviously terrified.

Sam, Mikaela and I stormed up to Simmons, our emotions still raw.

"What is Sector Seven?" I questioned.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He spat.

I snatched him by his shirt and pulled him close, looking at him square in the eye.

"Now you look here, you bastard – " I snarled but a large finger bumped my back, interrupting me mid-sentence. I turned to see Optimus looking down at me.

"Don't be too rough, Delyia." He instructed.

Deciding he was right, I let Simmons go and stood next to Optimus's huge feet, leaning against them for support. _God, I'm tired._

"Hey!" Simmons screeched.

It looked like Bumblebee was peeing on Agent Simmons and snickering. Smiling, I applauded Bumblebee.

"Yeah Bee! Show them who's boss!" I whooped.

"Bumblebee, stop lubricating the man." Optimus ordered Bee. He chuckled lightly.

The sound was delicate, but strong and my ears strained to hear more. _Who knew robots could produce such a beautiful sound?_ I unknowingly smiled up at Optimus.

"Your clothes, off. All of it." Mikaela ordered.

"For what?" Simmons retorted.

"For threatening my father."

As he stripped, I couldn't help but snicker at his attire. His corny superman 'Sector 7' wife beater and I didn't even dare stare too long at his boxers.

"Nice," Mikaela smirked, "Now get behind the pole."

She handcuffed him and his little friend together and then to the light pole.

"This is _such_ felony, what you're doing." His friend muttered.

"I will hunt you down!" Simmons yelled.

"He'll hunt you down!" His friend echoed.

"Without any remorse!"

"No remorse!"

Rolling my eyes, our group connected and we handed the glasses over to them. I heard a faint buzzing sound and I looked around, searching the sky.

"Do you guys hear that?"

Everyone shook their heads, the buzzing started to grow louder and one of the 'bots spoke up.

"Optimus, incoming!"

"Roll out!" Optimus ordered.

We all scattered; I trailed Optimus, Sam and Mikaela following me. Reaching down, Optimus opened up his hand. Heart pounding in my head I weighed out the options; get captured by S-7 creeps or jump onto an alien robot's hand. I scrambled to get on his hand and he lifted all of us up onto his shoulder; there wasn't enough room on the shoulder Sam and Mikaela clung to. I jumped up on his other shoulder, hands wrapping themselves around his neck. Helicopters zoomed past us; hard winds whipped us all around. Everything else whipped around in a blur: Mikaela slipped, Sam reached out grabbing her hand. Sam clung to Mikaela and to Optimus, but I could tell his hands were slipping as well. Trapped, I was unable to help; panic seized my chest and I gripped Optimus' neck tighter.

"Optimus! Help them! _Do something!"_

As soon as the words escaped my lips, Sam's hand slipped, he and Mikaela falling to the hard concrete. I screamed, attempting to leap after them, but Optimus held me back. A whir of yellow flew by, catching Sam and Mikaela. Relief spread through me and I smiled. _Thank God for Bee. _But the relief was short lived as the helicopters circled Bee, shooting thick ropes, locking themselves around his limbs. My heart hammered in my chest._They're hurting him!_ Fear for Sam, for Mikaela, for Bee, for _me;_ it was all too much. I screamed, scratching, fighting, prying, trying so hard to get away from Optimus.

"We have to help them!" I cried desperately, "Optimus we have to do something! _Please!_ We can't just leave them all there to die! We have to do something!"

I pleaded and Optimus said nothing, he gaze locked on Bumblebee.

"Dammit!" I screamed, pounding my fists against Optimus, "Let me go! I have to help him!"

I turned my attention away from Optimus and started to yell at the police, as if they could hear me.

"Let him go! Let him go! He isn't fighting back! Dammit!" Hot tears flooded down and sob wracked through my body.

I watched as they carried my best friends away, and my hurt turned to fear and anger. I needed an outlet, and Optimus was the one to get it.

"Why are you such a coward? You could've stopped them! You could've stopped them from taking my friends! From hurting Bee! But you sat by and did _nothing! Nothing!"_

My throat hurt and I quieted down, Optimus' optics bore into me.

"There was nothing I could do without harming the humans. I apologize. However, your friends will not be harmed. Sam and Mikaela will surely be released after they co-operate. You are one-hundred percent correct about one thing. This is all my fault." He consoled.

"What about Bee? He's my friend too!" I protested.

"Optimus!" Jazz interrupted, "The human girl is right! We can't just sit by and do nothing! We can't leave Bumblebee there to die! It isn't right!"

"There is nothing we can do without hurting the humans." Optimus repeated.

"I hate you." I murmured; Optimus cocked his head sideways. _He hadn't heard me._

"I hate you!" I screamed, turning away from him.

All the Autobots remained silent, what could they say?

"This is what Bumblebee would've wanted." Optimus sighed, anger and hurt shone through in his voice.

"How can you decide that for hi- "

"There's nothing left to say about the matter. We _have_ to find the cube; otherwise Bumblebee might die in vain."

I had nothing left to say, I refused to ride in Optimus' Peterbilt so I rode with Jazz instead. I remained silent the rest of the drive to where ever the hell we were going.


	5. Chapter 5

Jazz had turned out to be better company than I'd hoped for; taking my mind off of Optimus, for the most part, and making me laugh.

"Jazzy," He snorted at his nickname, "Where are we going?" I asked.

"I'm not entirely sure, I'm just following the boss." He replied.

I rolled my eyes and a disgruntled sound escaped my lips.

"So I assume you aren't chill with the boss-man?" Jazz questioned.

"He's a coward." I grunted.

"As much as I like your fiery spirit girly," Jazz chuckled, "He is looking out for the best interest of everyone involved."

Shock gripped me, "_How can you say that?_ How is it in Bee's _best_ interest to die?"

"Now I didn't say that." Jazz retorted, "Boss has to weigh out all the options, for _every_ party involved. It doesn't include just the Autobots vs. that Sector Seven group; it includes a large amount of organisms, like the entire human race, what's left of the Autobots. All of those groups includes people he cares for, I couldn't dream of having his job, he's always under stress and pressure. It would wear me out." Jazz sighed.

I frowned, not wanting to agree with the 'bot. _However he had a point._ Having a title like 'Leader of the Autobots' ought to have its pressures and restrictions. My anger wavered the more and more I thought about all the pressure Optimus must have riding on him. If he messes up, an entire world would be demolished. But, my resentment towards him stubbornly stood strong.

"I just don't understand how he could sacrifice Bee so easily."

"Delyia," Jazz sighed. "Compared to the human race, we '_robots_' aren't as emotionally attached and we definitely don't base our decisions off of emotion as much as you do. However, even with that being said, I have no doubt what-so-ever that the decision to leave Bee was a tough one. Bee is very close to all of us, and don't tell anyone this;" his voice hushed to a whisper. "But Optimus confides in me more than you think. I do believe he's having a hard time leaving Bee like that."

I started at the dashboard in disbelief, "Really Jazz?"

"Really."

"Then why – I mean I guess I understand _why_ from a logical place, but _WHY_ didn't he just do something? Not all human beings are good, not all of us deserved to be spared."

"That's not our call to make." Jazz replied, leaving us in silence the rest of the drive.

Not too long after mine and Jazz's conversation, Optimus led us off the road and transformed; the rest of the 'bots followed suit. As Jazz lifted me up on his shoulder, Optimus glanced back in our direction and our eyes locked for a split second. I could tell, even from a distance, that so many conflicting emotions swam deep in his mind. I felt my throat tighten and I focused my thoughts on Bee. _He's the reason why Bee won't live to see another day._ The resentment quickly returned, but not as dominant. Optimus motioned for everyone to follow him and started to climb up the towering building laid out in front of us. When we reached the roof, Jazz set me on the ground next to his foot.

"Please let this work." Optimus whispered, pulling out the glasses.

"Fire it up Optimus;" urged Ironhide.

Optimus scanned the glasses and a large blue Earth appeared, faintly glowing.

"The code -" Optimus murmured; "The code on these glasses indicated that the All Spark is 230 miles from here."

"I sense the Decepticons are getting ready to mobilize." Ratchet announced.

"They must know it's here as well." Ironhide groaned, rubbing his face.

"How do they know_?"_ I asked.

"That isn't important now; we must get to the All Spark before the Decepticons." Optimus ordered.

"What about Bumblebee? We can't just leave him to die!" I yelled at him.

"Bumblebee is a brave solider. This is what he would want."

"Why are we fighting to save the humans?" Ironhide retorted.

I was too angry with Optimus to be offended by the statement.

"They're a primitive and violent race." Ironhide continued.

"Were we so different?" Optimus inquired. "You know there's only one way to end this war. We must destroy the Cube. If all else fails, I will unite it with the spark in my chest."

"W-Wait, what does that mean?" I questioned, as fear pierced my heart.

I looked to Jazz and he gazed at me, his expression solemn. That's all it took to click. I whirled around to focus on Optimus.

"You would sacrifice your life, to save a race that's too stupid and ignorant to even acknowledge your _existence, _a race that couldn't care less about any one of you?"

"A necessary sacrifice to bring peace to this planet." He answered.

"If you truly think that sacrificing yourself will bring peace to this planet, then you're an idiot." I seethed.

Ironhide growled, "Now you – " Jazz shushed him.

"You sacrificing yourself will lead to nothing but the Autobots losing their leader and strongest warrior; and all hope of ever defeating the Decepticons will have been thrown out the window. I know I haven't been with you that long, but even I know that is – "

"Enough." Optimus silenced me.

"The girl has a point Optimus." Ratchet spoke up. Jazz nodded in agreement.

"I – We cannot let the humans pay for our mistakes – "

"Optimus – "

"It's been an honor serving with you all." Optimus cut me off. "Autobots roll out!"

Jazz scooped me up and jumped off the building; me screaming all the way down. He transformed and I slumped into the driver seat. An hour or so passed, and I noticed a yellow blob in the middle of the road. _What?_ As we got closer and closer, the blob changed into the form of a car but not just _any_ car. An electric yellow Camaro with sleek black racing stripes rode past us, along with several black Suv's. As Bee passed us, I yelled out his name in delight.

"Bee! Bee you're alive!" I choked back tears and pressed my face against the glass window.

Optimus and the rest of the Autobots hit the brakes and turned around, following Bee.

"Jazz, why are we following Bee?"

"He has the All Spark." He replied simply.

After a long moment I spoke up again, "Jazz, H–He won't _really_ sacrifice himself will he?"

Jazz didn't reply at first. "I think he would do whatever he felt was right."

"But his choice isn't right – "

"All that matters to him is that he protects the humans." He interjected.

Huffing, I gave up trying to argue my point. Sirens sounded, and I twisted around trying to see where it was coming from. It was the same police car that attacked me and Sam the first night. However, now he had other vehicles following him.

"Jazz, are they – "

"Yes."

Optimus was transforming, and so was one of the Decepticons. Optimus threw himself at the Decepticon, metal colliding with metal. _Be safe._ I sent the thought to Optimus as he fought the scum. Optimus struggled against his opponent, throwing him off the freeway. However, the Decpeticon had an iron grip on Optimus and he tumbled over with him.

"No..!" I whispered as we drove away, leaving Optimus behind.

"He'll be fine, don't worry." Jazz consoled me, guessing what I was thinking.

_Please be okay._ I prayed silently as we drove into the city.


	6. Chapter 6

**Once again, i'd like to give a big fat THANK YOU to Bee4ever for being the coolest Beta ever. (: Also, a huge thanks for everyone that followed, favorited and/or reviewed! (: I'm so happy you guys are enjoying this story, cause i know i definitely am! hah! Let me know what you guys think of this chapter! (: **

When we arrived in Mission City, we rode a few miles in and stopped; the city was already in shambles. Citizens scrambled around the streets, debris strewn along sidewalks. All in all, the city was a chaotic mess. Lennox jumped out and started barking various orders at his soldiers, everyone trying to do everything at once. I ran to Sam and Mikaela as they got out of Bee, locking them both in a vice grip. Sam and Mikaela wrapped their arms around me, all of us glad to be reunited.

"Sam, I thought I wasn't ever going to see you again!" I choked out.

Sam said nothing but wrapped his arms tight around me. Mikaela backed off from the sibling moment.

"We're siblings, _best friends._ There's no way you'll ever get rid of me that easily." Sam grinned, trying to lighten the mood.

Before I could reply, green smoke clouded my vision.

"Sam what – "

"It's Starscream!" Ironhide bellowed.

He and Bumblebee ordered us to get back and take cover as they grabbed a truck and shielded themselves behind it. All the soldiers, citizens, and Sam, Mikaela and I ran trying to get as far away as we could. I heard the explosion before I felt it; a loud resounding _boom_ rang in my ears. My body was thrown back, landing hard on the concrete, and Sam and Mikaela landed a few feet away from me. As we recovered from the explosion, a mechanical whimpering demanded our attention. Bee lay sprawled on the ground, crawling towards us. At first, my brain didn't connect. I ran over to Bee and as I got closer, I thought he looked a lot _smaller._ That's when I noticed a pile of yellow scrap underneath a large trunk. My eyes trailed to Bee again and I saw his legs were _gone._

"Bee! Oh God Oh God, your legs!" Sam wailed and ran over to Bee, attempting to comfort him.

A pick-up truck appeared next to me and Sam and parked; and out walked Mikaela. She ran over to Bee and started linking him up to the truck. Jazz had disappeared and Ironhide and Ratchet were fighting off what I guessed was more Decepticons. Bumblebee, shaking as he did so, held out his hand and handed the Cube to Sam.

"I'm not gonna leave you." Sam gasped.

"Sam!" Lennox called, "Where's the cube?"

"Right here." Sam held up the cube.

"All right; I can't leave my guys back there, so here, take this flare. See that tall, white building with the statues on it? Go to the roof, and set the flare."

"No." Sam hastily replied.

"Signal the chopper and set the flare!" Lennox continued.

"No, no! I can't do this!"

"Listen to me! You're a soldier now, all right? I need you to take this Cube. Get it into military hands while we hold them off. Or else a lot of people are going to die."

"No, I'm not going." Sam stood firm.

"Sam," I interjected. "I'll go with you, we can do this together. Us, we're an impossible-to-stop-brother-sister team. We can do this, trust me."

Sam reluctantly nodded and grabbed the Cube. While Lennox was busy with Mikaela I grabbed a stray gun and ran after Sam. Hearts pounding we dashed down the street, Ironhide and Ratchet soon followed.

"Sam!" Ironhide shouted, "We will protect you!"

We all continued to run and turn and twist down alleys and main streets. We took a sharp left and I noticed something large, too large to be any animal, perched on top of a building. Straining my eyes I saw Jazz, in the clutches of some rather enormous robot. Jazz thrashed around in the robots grip, shouting out insults among other things.

"Don't hurt him! You bastard!" I screamed, shooting at him.

The robots gaze turned to me, and Jazz took the moment of distraction to slip out of his grasp and jump onto another building, shooting at him.

"Megatron! I'm over here you lugnut!" Jazz screamed before taking off in another direction.

I felt as though all the air had been drained from my lungs. Megatron stared hard, analyzing me.

"I will come back for you!" He boomed before flying after Jazz.

Legs turning to jelly; I collapsed on the gravel, terror taking control. I had just pissed off the leader of the Decepticons; the most evil, terrifying group in the universe.

"Delyia!" Sam cried out, running back to me, "We have to go, come on!" He pulled me up and we took off again.

Darting around cars and other obstacles we ran and ran. A jet flew down and Starscream transformed, landing less than a foot in front of us. The force from his landing threw Sam and I back, rolling to a stop next to Ironhide.

"Delyia! Grab Sam and get to the building!" He ordered as he and Ratchet fought off Starscream.

Pulling Sam to his feet, we bounded down a different street, adrenaline pumping fast.

"Sam hurry up!" I screeched.

The building stood, tall and towering, at the end of the street ahead of us. _Almost, there. Just push yourself a little harder. You can make it. _I gave myself a mental pep-talk and pushed Sam to run faster. Heavy footsteps shook the ground. I glanced behind me. _Megatron_ was coming after us, and the distance between us was quickly decreasing. Terror flowed through every vein in my body, prompting me to run even faster.

"Sam! He's coming!" I screeched.

"Our paths cross again, little femme! Give me the Cube!" Megatron growled.

"Run! Run!" I shouted, willing my legs to go faster.

We threw ourselves in the building, dashing to the stairwell. Megatron busted through the wall, storming after us. _Where is Optimus Prime when you need him?_ I thought, desperate to have to the leader robot shield us. We climbed the stairs; when we climbed as far as it would let us we darted across the floor.

"I can smell you fleshlings, your fear radiates off you like heat from your sun."

The floor rumbled and groaned; it soon began to tear itself apart as Megatron flew up from below. Sam and I leaped onto the new set of stairs, running up onto the roof.

"Over here!" We screamed as Sam lit the flare.

A helicopter flew down, Sam and I running to it. He held out the cube for the soldier in the 'copter to take. I noticed Starscream a few rooftops away. Grabbing Sam, I threw our bodies away from the machine as it exploded.

"Delyia, Sam, hang on!" A loud baritone voice boomed.

Wheeling around I saw him, in all his red and blue glory. Optimus leapt across rooftops heading towards us. A part of the roof collapsed behind us; Megatron spilling out onto the ground. He stood, towering over us. The silver metal armor glinted against the sunlight. Quickly forgetting about Optimus, I pulled Sam away from Megatron, and hid us behind one of the statues. Megatron cocked his head and his metallic lips curved into a smirk.

"Is it fear or courage that compels you, femme fleshling?"

"Stay away from her Megatron!" Optimus shouted heading for us.

"Oh," Megatron cackled, "Do I sense some sort of compassion toward the femme, Prime?"

"Fuck you – you pile of tin!" I screamed at him. _How the hell do you insult a robot?_

"I shall ignore that petty comment, if you give me the All Spark. I might even allow you to live as my pets." Megatron snickered.

"I'm never giving you this All Spark!" Sam denied Megatron.

"Oh, so unwise." Megatron lifted his gun, shooting at us.

We were thrown back, plummeting to our cemented graves. The wind stung my eyes. Shutting them; the tears squeezed through my lids. I felt Sam wrap his arms around me. _I'm going to die._ The thought passed through my mind, only causing more tears to flow. Sam and I were jerked around; something smooth and cool surrounded our bodies. Peeking out of one eye, I saw silver metal. Opening my eyes, I searched more, past the silver metal, which I now saw was a giant metal hand, and Optimus Prime's body.

"I've got you." His voice eased my racing heart and he shifted so he wouldn't crush Sam and I.

"Hold on to the cube." He muttered.

Tightening our grip on the cube, Optimus leapt down from the building, crashing to the floor. The air left my lungs and I laid there, sprawled on Optimus' right arm, trying to catch my breath. He picked me up and set me next to Sam. Megatron crashed not too far from us.

"Sam, Delyia, you both risked your lives to protect the Cube."

"Disgusting." I hear Megatron whisper as he flicked a human away.

"No sacrifice, No victory." Sam uttered the famous Witwicky motto.

"Sam, if I cannot defeat Megatron, you must push the Cube into my chest. I will sacrifice myself to destroy it."

"Optimus no!" I gasped.

"Delyia, we've had this coversat-"

"You can't sacrifice yourself!" _Not now, not ever._

"Get behind me." Optimus uttered, standing up.

Sam and I wedged ourselves in a crack of the road, watching the battle unfold.

"It's just you and me, Megatron."

"No, it's just me Prime!" Megatron shouted, baring his teeth. "Tell me, what is going on between you and the fleshlings?"

Optimus ignored Megatrons comment, "At the end of this day, one shall stand, one shall fall."

They collided; Optimus throwing as much force as he could behind his punches, maneuvering around Megatrons attacks.

"You still fight for the weak!" Megatron lashed out at Optimus, a long scratch lined his chest. "This is why you lose!"

They continued to fight, throwing each other around, sometimes locking a punch, sometimes missing. They finally crashed into each other with such strong force, it knocked both of them back. The aftershock caused Sam and I to be launched out from our hiding place, landing in between Optimus and Megatron.

"Mine! All Spark!" Megatron gurgled, crawling towards us.

"Sam! Put the Cube in my chest now!" Optimus ordered.

My heart stuttered, _No!_ As if we were in sync, Sam and I grabbed onto the All Spark, running towards Megatron we shoved it into his chest. The Cube melted away, and Megatron spouted various robotic noises. His body vibrated and the noises reached higher pitches. Megatron doubled over, his body still twitching. Optimus stood, his shoulders slumped as he approached us and the now dead Decepticon leader.

"You left me no choice, _brother._" Optimus whispered.

Sam hadn't noticed what Optimus had said. I; however, snapped my head up to stare in horrified awe at him. _Did he really just say brother?_ Optimus didn't meet my gaze. A few moments later, the police car from before pulled up, transforming into, who's name I discovered later, Barricade. Optimus stood protectively in between us and the robot.

"I have not come here to harm you, yet. Consider this a warning, Autobot scum," he spat, "We will be back, _soon._ And when we do, the femme fleshling will be mine. Watch your backs." He snarled and transformed before driving away.

"D-Did he just refer to me?" I croaked.

"Unfortunately, he did Delyia. For what purpose, that is unclear as of now." Optimus sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

After a few moments, he kneeled down before me and Sam.

"Sam, Delyia, I owe you both my life. We are in your debt."

I gave Optimus a small smile, "Don't forget, you saved m- us as well."

The rest of the Autobots and soldiers filed in around us, patting us on the back, grinning wildly.

"Delyia! You're alright girl!" I heard Jazz laugh.

I ran to him, wrapping my arms around his leg. (That was the highest I could reach with a 20 foot robot.)

"Jazz, you're alive! I was so scared that Megatron killed you!"

"Nah, that ol' lump of scrap metal didn't even put a dent in my armor!" We chuckled.

"However," Jazz continued, suddenly serious, "You saved my life as well as my leaders, therefore I am forever in your debt little lady. "He reached down, gently patting my head. "I would give you what your race calls _a hug_, however if I did that, I'd definitely squish you."

I laughed, "It's cool! It's the thought that counts! But Jazz, really, you don't need to feel like your indebted to me. It's nothing." I smiled.

"Saving the life of the last living Prime and my own isn't nothing silly girl. Oh by the way," he kneeled down before, bringing his head close to mine he whispered, "Are you still on rough terms with boss-man or…?"

"Well I don't hate him, not anymore at least. I might actually like him." I smiled.

"_Like_ him?" Jazz winked.

I scoffed, hiding the blush that crept up my neck, "Jazz shut up."

He laughed and walked away, talking to Ratchet. I turned and found Optimus, standing a little ways away from everyone else. _Perfect_ I thought, I needed to apologize. I jogged over to him, my thighs screaming in the process. As I approached him, my confidence waned and I nervously tapped his 'shin' plate.

"Optimus," I called.

He jerked a little, not expecting anyone to approach him, especially not me. He knelt down and brought his head closer to mine. Eyes met optics and my heart stuttered.

"I-I just wanted to apologize – "

Optimus held up a hand "Delyia, you have nothing to apologize for."

"No Optimus, I do." I restarted, "I just wanted to apologize for my actions and words expressed over the past couple days. I was harsh and only thinking emotionally because of Bee being tortured. I took out my stress and anger on you. It wasn't right, so I'm sorry. "

Optimus' metallic lips formed a smile and he ran an elegant finger from the crown of my head to my mid-back. The cool metal created a pleasing sensation everywhere he touched.

"I accept your apology, however unnecessary it may be. I must confess, the thought of you being so upset bothered me. Especially since it was my fault. For that I apologize as well, for making you suffer because of my actions."

My lips formed an ear to ear smile and I patted his cheek; his optics widened at the sudden contact.

"Apology accepted. You know, you're not so bad for a 32 foot tall alien robot."

A whisper of a laugh vibrated through his body,

"Thank you Delyia, you are not that bad for a tiny human girl either."

"You know." I grinned.

Optimus looked at me confused, "What do I know?"

"It's a figure of speech Optimus." Ironhide butted in as he approached us.

Ironhide patted Optimus on the back and turned his attention to me.

"You fought valiantly against the Decepticons, for a squishy; delicate human."

Startled by the compliment I stuttered out a 'Thank-you.'

"Speaking about Decepticons," Ironhide started, "What are we going to do with this femme, considering the Deceptions are apparently after her?"

Lennox joined us as well, over-hearing our conversation,

"Considering all the factors, I'm sure our commanders would have no problem letting Delyia stay on our base with us, until she is safe, or at least _somewhat_ safe."

"O-on a military base?" I gasped.

"Yes ma'am. However you wouldn't be staying for free. You can help us out around the base, cooking for the soldiers; helping at training. You used to work at an autoshop right?"

I nodded.

"Well," he continued, "You can help out our mechanics from time to time. I know you didn't have a lot of experience with cars, but you could help out with some minor things. When you aren't doing those, you could help keep the hangar where the Autobots will be staying, clean as well. I'm sure after a while things will need to be cleaned."

"Well, there's no way I could say no to that." I laughed.


	7. Chapter 7

**I'm absolutely blown away at how many people are following/favorited my story! This is amazing thank you all so much! :) Thanks to Bee4ever for helping me get some ideas for this and future chapters!**

**Let me know what you guys think about this chapter, it's cruicial! :) Thanks again~**

Somehow, instead of me being an important part of the newly formed, N.E.S.T, group; I was their, for lack of a better term, "errand-girl." When someone needed something delivered to a different part of the hangar, I was their girl, when someone needed a quick errand taken care of in town, I was their girl. When they needed take-out, I was their girl. Quickly, I was beginning to realize that since I was only human, this was as much help as I could dish out,_at least for now._ A whole month had passed since Mission City and we had accomplished nothing since. Sam, Mikaela and I were on temporary stay at the base, at least until everything died down. Having Sam and Mikaela there helped relieve my stress, assisting with my errand running as well. We all had to share the work-load; which was a surprisingly hefty amount. During that, I'd hang out with Bee and Jazz, since I was with Sam a lot; Bee was there too. Jazz and I were nearly inseparable. Slowly, I began to realize that Jazz and I were becoming like Sam and I were; we'd do everything Sam and I would. Out of all the Autobots, I trusted Jazz the most. Ironhide and I were also starting to get-along much better, occasionally poking fun at each other; and I checked out his cannons. He loved to show them off! However, Optimus and I didn't really have a lot of time to communicate. He always seemed to be training or conversing in secret with Lennox about something I wasn't "cleared" to know. It sort of stung, considering all we'd been through in Mission City. I thought we'd be friends by now. I couldn't even call us that because at the most the only vocabulary we had at base was, "hey," and "goodnight." This only made me even more determined to attempt at a friendship with Optimus Prime. _Why shouldn't I?_ He seemed like a level-headed individual and if nothing else, he'd be a good person to go to for advice. I could only try.

"Sam!" I ran into his room, leaping on his bed.

Startled, he jumped up squealing and punched my arm.

"Ow!" I yelped and punched him back.

"Delyia! You can't just barge into a man's room like that! You have to knock, you have to communicate!" He groaned, laying back down in bed.

"C'mon we have errands and stuff to run!" I smiled, pulling him up.

After I finally convinced him to get up, we met up with Mikaela and started on our chores for the day. We delivered a few documents to different people for Lennox, helped Epps out on some project he was working on, and helped out in the mess hall. Noon rolled around and we took our hour lunch break; all three of us heading to the Autobots hangar. Bee, Jazz and Ironhide all waited for us as usual, however a certain Peterbilt truck was over in the corner. _Optimus is here?_My heart stuttered as we descended the stairs and gathered next to the three Autobots. Bee hummed happily,

" – Hey there Captain – It's always a pleasure to see you – "

We all grinned at Bee as we sat and opened up our lunches, proceeding to chow down.

"You fleshings are so boring, doing the same things _everyday_. How do you live with yourselves?" Ironhide snickered.

"Shut-up 'Hide." I stuck my tongue out, "At least I'm actually doing work, instead of sitting on my _ass_ all day long. Keep that up and you'll get fat!"

Ironhide mockingly hurt, replied,

"You're so horrible to me fleshy. Even after _I_ saved your planet! Where's the respect?"

Rolling my eyes, I giggled and flicked a piece of food at him.

"Drama Queen."

Jazz and Bee snickered; Mikaela and Sam were deep in their own conversation. I finished up my sandwich and glanced over at the Peterbilt as he sat there alone.

"Hey guys," I whispered, causing the three Autobots, along with Sam and Mikaela, to lean in.

"Why's Optimus here today? Isn't he usually, you know, training or something?"

"Well," Jazz replied, "He's probably just taking a breather – everyone needs one, once in a while."

"Should – Should he be by himself?" I hesitantly questioned, I felt bad.

_No one should be alone._

"Maybe he'd want to join us?" I asked Jazz.

"Prime!" Ironhide shouted, "The little femme fleshling wants to know if you want to sit with us instead of sitting over there by yourself – Like a loner!" Ironhide whispered the last part.

My face turned beet red. I hadn't expected him to react so fast! The now familiar whirring and groans of metals twisting and re-shaping, rang out in the hangar. A few heavy footsteps shook the ground. Glancing back I saw Optimus towering above all of us.

"I suppose it would be better than being _a loner."_ He looked to Ironhide.

Ironhide grinned and looked down at us. I was so busy watching Ironhide and Optimus that I wasn't paying attention to what I was doing. I stuck food in my mouth, but accidentally bit down on my index finger.

"_Son of a bitch!"_ I yelped as I rubbed my finger.

"Resorting to cannibalism, Delyia?" Jazz laughed, I flipped him off and continued to rub my now sore digit.

"Hey," I started, "Guys, I'm curious, what exactly do you eat? You know, like food?"

Jazz and Ironhide replied immediately, "Energon."

"So that's all you guys ever eat – "

"Well," Jazz interrupted, "We don't really 'eat;' we consume energon for energy. It's somewhat like food, but not exactly. Ya catch my drift D?"

I nodded, "Yeah that makes sense."

"How can you guys live without taste?" Mikaela questioned in wonder.

"We're robots." Ironhide bluntly stated.

"_No way._ I thought you guys were giant paper shredders. My mind has been blown." I sarcastically retorted, moving on to the candy. Ironhide ignored my comment.

"Now I have a question for you: Why do fleshlings cover themselves in that fabric material?"

"You mean clothes?" Sam asked.

Ironhide nodded his head.

"Well," Sam continued, "Humans are afraid of being naked, it's considered taboo. Only your significant other should be allowed to see your entire body."

"Why?" Optimus spoke up, entirely curious.

"It's considered a privilege, something special. To us, our bodies are our temples, and we should only let few in. By a way of reciprocating this belief, we clothe ourselves and only allow our love to see our complete self." I smiled up at him.

"Strange, we have nothing similar to that except allowing one to see our sparks on Cybertron." Optimus mumbled, deep in thought.

"Well, we're complicated I guess." I grinned.

"You better believe you are!" Jazz snorted.

I threw my candy at Jazz. The little pieces flew everywhere, one bouncing against his optic. He gently shoved me with his finger, causing me to roll a few feet away. We all laughed; and Sam, Mikaela and I finished our lunches.

"Delyia, Sam, Mikaela?" Jazz caught our attention, "What's human life like?"

"What do you mean?" Sam questioned.

"Well, what's it like? What do you fleshies like to do?"

"Hmm.. that's a really broad question. Delyia? You want to start on that?" Sam asked.

"Well, me personally, I like to sketch, listen to music, go for runs, uh. . ."

"What is music?" Optimus looked at me confused.

My jaw dropped, "Y-You don't know what music is?"

"Well," He made a sound like he was clearing his throat. "We didn't necessarily have a lot of music on our planet. Is it the same thing here?"

"It's easier to show than explain." I fumbled around for my IPod.

Pulling it out, I selected a random playlist and shuffled; _Calling All Gamma Rays_ _by Quiet Hounds!_ flowed through my tiny speakers. All the Autobots' heads perked, listening intently to the song. After a little I switched the song. This time_Iridescent by Linkin Park_ hummed and the Autobots seemed even more interested. I played one last song, _Sleepless (Original Mix) by Excision & Savvy_played aloud. The autobot's eyes widened.

"W-What is that?" Ironhide asked, astonished.

"It's called dubstep!" I smiled. "It's one of my favorite things to listen to."

"Those sounds," Jazz mumbled, "It sounds so close to…" He stopped short and shut his optics while listening to the song.

Optimus seemed equally entranced, however he said nothing but continued to sit there and listen to the electronic melody. Bee chirped happily and clapped his hands.

"So, you guys like dubstep?" I giggled, turning my IPod off, earning a groan of disappointment from Jazz.

Bee nodded his head excitedly, " – I'm lovin' it! – "

Ironhide gruffly replied, "I like it as well."

Optimus remained silent, I turned to him and poked his 'stabilizing servo.' He looked down at me, his optics causing my skin to turn to a bluish haze.

"What did you think Optimus?"

"It was fascinating, I must admit."

I smiled, "You need to loosen up a bit, Mr. I'm-a-leader-of-the-Autobots-so-I'm-serious-all-the-time Prime."

"That's like asking Megatron to fight on our side, _never gonna happen._" Ironhide mockingly snorted.

"I'm afraid Ironhide is correct in his statement. I cannot _loosen up_, my soldiers need me to be strong at all times, as well as the humans we protect. To _loosen up_ would be to put all of us in danger."

"Optimus, everyone needs down time." Sam worriedly replied.

"When was the last time you took a day off?" Mikaela asked him.

Even though he didn't reply, our question was answered; _not in a very long time_.

"Well it's settled then, tomorrow we're all taking a day off!" I smiled.

Optimus shook his head, "I cannot afford – "

"It wasn't a suggestion." Sam and I stated together.

Optimus sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. He seemed to only do that when he was stressed.

"Don't worry so much Prime!" I smiled. "Tomorrow you all are gonna relax and have a great time!"

I glanced down at my watch, _1:13_. Shit.

"Okay guys, we're officially late for our afternoon shift. Let's get a move on!" I ordered as I ran to the door.

"We'll see you guys after work!" I yelled behind me.

It was well after dinner when Sam, Mikaela and I finished our work. Quickly, we snatched something from the mess hall and returned to the Autobots hangar. Ratchet had joined us now and we all sat outside under the setting sun. Quickly becoming bored I fidgeted around, noticing Optimus was by himself, _again._ I walked up to the Peterbilt and knocked on his grill.

"Optimus?"

"Yes?" his baritone voice hummed from the cab.

"Why are you always by yourself?" I questioned.

"I am not, _always by myself._"

"Well, it sure seems like it." I concluded.

"Why do you say that?" He asked; curiosity clear in his voice.

"Every time I see you, you're either training alone with the dummys, talking to Lennox about battle plans, or sitting in this corner." I explained.

"Would it be better if I were more social?" He asked me.

"I think so, it can't hurt. You can't be like this with your soldiers all the time."

"I confess I normally am not this 'anti-social'; but there has been so much going on as of late, I haven't much felt like socializing." He sighed.

_Poor guy._ I sympathized; it must be hard being the leader of anything.

"Well, would you mind if I joined you?" I nervously bit the inside of my cheek.

The truck hummed, as if in thought; the passenger side door clicked open and I took that as a yes. I climbed in and made myself comfortable, taking in the interior. From the smooth leather seats to the complicated radio, everything seemed so, _Optimus._ Or at least from what I knew of him, his interior seemed to match his personality.

"So," I began, "How long ago did this war start? What was your life like before this war? What did you do before you became Prime?"

I heard the AC hiss, I assumed it was equal to a sigh from Optimus.

"The war began many millennia ago, on my home planet Cybertron. I was a young bot, and very naïve. My name was Orion Pax. I was a simple bot, working at the port where I helped unload and store energon. I was very happy then, a different bot. Back then, our technology was not as advanced as it was now. We couldn't transform or fly. So when Megatron and the Decepticons came, we were all in awe – " I noticed Optimus seemed to ponder over something for a moment, then he continued on. "One day, I was working as usual, with my _friends_, Ariel and Dion. I heard a commotion outside the port, so I went to have a look. There was Megatron and a large number of trucks full of some material, I assumed. He asked me if he could store his material in an empty hangar and I agreed. As we walked into the hangar, he asked what we stored here. Energon,I replied; thinking nothing of it. He suddenly attacked us, killing both myself and _Ariel._"

Beneath his deep baritone, I could barely sense a bit of longing and hurt. _Were they romantically involved?_ I couldn't ask him. He didn't even know me, and I doubt Optimus would open up that much to a human.

"Some bots I'd met that day took me to Alpha Trion, who rebuilt me and Ariel. From that day on I was known as Optimus Prime. I'd asked him if he could help rebuild Ariel as well. He said he'd try. He succeeded, and she became Elita 1. With that in mind I rushed to stop Megatron. I fought him off that day, and ever since we've been sworn enemies; both of us fighting to stop one another."

I was silent. _What do I say? I'm sorry? I don't think that's going to cover it._ I mentally sighed.

"Optimus, I – I don't know what to say, other than you're a brave Autobot for doing what you're doing. I know you had to have had made a lot of sacrifices in your time. So for that, I'm eternally grateful." I patted the dashboard, not knowing what else to do.

"If it's any consolation, I know how you feel, in a way. I know what it's like losing people you care about."

"Hm?" Optimus silently questioned me.

"I – uh, well when I was younger, about twelve years old, my parents were killed. Fortunately for you Bots, you have second chances at life, with being able to rebuild. However we humans don't have such a luxury. Once you're gone, _you're gone._ There's no way to reverse death on Earth; it's pretty much the only permanent thing on this planet."

Optimus and I were silent, reveling in the new information. Glancing at the radio clock, green numbers flashed back at me. **10:17**. as if on cue, I let out a soft yawn.

"Well, I think I'm going to head in for tonight. Goodnight Optimus, and thank you. I really enjoyed our talk." I smiled and patted the dash one more time before stepping out of the Peterbilt and heading indoors. All the other bots were already asleep. Sam and Mikaela were nowhere to be found. _Probably already headed off to bed._ I started up the stairs before I heard Optimus call my name.

"Delyia." His voice smoothed over my skin.

"Yeah?" I turned around, giving him a tired smile.

"I enjoyed our talk as well. Thank you for listening."

"It's no pro-"

"And," he continued, "I would like to have more conversations as such in the future. Goodnight." He flashed his lights once and the Peterbilt's engine shut off.

Grinning from ear to ear, I skipped all the way back to my room and jumped into my bed. I fell asleep smiling that night.


	8. Chapter 8

_Screams echoed through the vast darkness. I couldn't see and I was starting to panic. Where am I? Why are all these people screaming? A light appeared a few yards away. I darted to it; feet thumping hard against the ground. Stepping through, my heart jumped to my throat. Destruction rained through the scene before me; buildings broken down, fire licking up the sides of trees. The bodies of citizens lay strewn across the sidewalk and their loved ones bent over them. I cautiously walked up to a citizen, her dirty hair lay in a tangled heap as she cried over her husband. She spoke in soft, whimpering prayers and she tried to stop his bleeding._

_"W-What happened here?"_

_The woman whipped around, her eyes wild and tears still drying on her dirt covered cheeks._

_"What do you mean '_what happened_'? Those alien things, they attacked us!" She scoffed and turned back to her dying husband._

_My heart stuttered in my chest._Decepticons?_I ran into the burning city searching for a familiar face, any familiar face. I noticed stray parts were strewn along. Inspecting the area, I saw Jazz's torso and head; both crushed under a part of a building._

_"Jazz!" I shrieked, running over to what was left of him._

_I laid a hand on his face, the metal cool to the touch. Hot tears stung my eyes and a wrenching sob raked through my body. I wrapped my arms around his head, laying my cheek against what was the Cybertonian equivalent. I prayed to anyone who was listening,_

_"Please," my voice cracked, "Please Jazz don't leave."_

_"D-Delyia. . . "A sweet baritone rang through my ears._

_I whipped around, my gaze landing on a certain cobalt blue and red robot. He was on his chest plates, crawling with_one arm_towards me. My heart sank and the tears flowed even more;_Not him too!_Dashing over to him, my hands gripped his large metallic finger. Optics met eyes and he sighed, resting his head on his only arm._

_"Wha – What's going on?" I stuttered._

_"We've lost." His voice was barely audible. "We've lost the war. You're all that's left of us." His tired optics started to close._

S-sam and Mikaela are gone too?

_"Optimus," His eyes drooped, "Optimus what's going on? Don't – " I placed my hands on either side of his cool_

_face; he weakly looked in my eyes._

_"Save what's left, Delyia;" he gasped, and I watched as his beautiful glowing optics turned to a dull, lifeless gray._

_"No!"_

"Delyia!"

Gasping, I flew up, and jumped off my bed. Sam and Mikaela stood looking at me worriedly.

"Are you okay? You were mumbling and sweating in your sleep." Mikaela wrapped her arms around me.

I nodded, muttering about a bad dream. They both suggested taking a shower, then meeting them in the hangar with the Autobots. Agreeing I stepped into the steaming shower, attempting to wash away the events of the dream. _It's just a dream._ I muttered as I washed myself. Finishing up, and throwing on some shorts and a t-shirt, I ran to meet up with everyone. When I got to the hangar, all the Autobots were there: Ironhide, Jazz, Optimus, Bumblebee and even Ratchet. Sam and Mikaela were standing next to Bee and waved me over. As I trotted over, the scene from my dream replayed in my mind; my heart fluttered again and I hastily dismissed it. Today was about relaxing. I beamed at everyone, leaning against Ratchet's leg.

"Ratchet!" The CMO looked down at me, "I'm so happy you could join us today!"

"What _are_ we going to do today?" Ironhide asked.

"Well, we have a lot of options. I guess." Laughing, I nervously played with my hair. _I forgot to think of something to do!_

"Like what D?" Jazz kneeled down to my level.

"Well, there's bound to be lots we could do right here on base! This place is huge! We could go exploring, and later we could have a race or something! Or maybe we could race now and just relax a little ways away from the hangar after. I'm not sure; what would you guys like to do?" I asked the 'bots.

They all looked at each other. None of them had the slightest idea.

" – I like – originality – ideas – " Bee attempted through the radio.

I smiled, "Alright so you guys want to race?"

Ironhide pumped up his fists. "This is my kind of game! What do you say Prime?"

Optimus rubbed his forehead, deep in thought. He finally rolled his shoulders and nodded.

"I believe a race would be beneficiary. Ironhide could use an, how you say, _ass-whooping."_

I sputtered and coughed, choking on air. _Did he really just say ass?_ Optimus looked at me with worry.

"Have I said something to offend you?"

"No, no!" I quickly denied. "I just wasn't expecting, _vulgarity,_ to ever come out of a robot like you."

"Like me –? "

Ironhide quickly interjected, "Let's make this race even more interesting. The winner of the race gets to decide what temporary paintjob the losers will have."

Jazz and Bee clapped their hands,

" – sounds great – "

"Yeah! That sounds like an awesome idea! I can't wait to see how you're going to look when I'm through with you 'Hide!" Jazz beamed.

Ironhide scoffed. "Yeah right you bag of tin. Dream on."

Bee chirped, transforming into the camaro, " – are we gonna talk all day or are we gonna rumble?"

The rest of the Autobots transformed, all of them lining up against our makeshift starting line. Their engines roared, waiting for the 'fleshies' to give them the signal. I looked at Sam,

"I bet you Ratchet is going to win."

Sam smirked, "You're on. I bet Bee's gonna win."

Mikaela laughed, "Optimus will win for sure guys."

I snorted, "Let's have a bet then, 5 bucks Ratchet wins."

Sam and Mikaela nodded in agreement and lined up; Sam and I on one side, Mikaela on the other. Giving her the signal we all counted down,

"3. . ." Ironhide and Jazz roared their engines.

"2. . ." Optimus honked, roaring his engine as well.

"1. . . " _Good luck Optimus._ I smiled sending the little prayer to him.

"GO!" We screamed.

The bots took off, leaving us behind in an enormous cloud of dust. It was hard to see who was in first and after a few seconds of trying to see I gave up turning to Sam.

"So how goes things between you and Mikaela? We haven't really talked much since getting here."

He smiled sadly at me. "I know; I've missed my best friend." I patted his shoulder and he reached out to me, grabbing me in a tight hug. Surprised I didn't react at first, however I soon gave him a squeeze of reassurance.

"But me and Mikaela are great!" He laughed pulling away, "We're taking it slow. Preferably for two reasons: One, I haven't had a serious girlfriend and she wants to make sure this is real and not some post-apocalyptic stuff runnin' in my veins." He snorted, "The second she doesn't really know, I'm kind of keeping it to myself."

"How can you keep that to yourself?"

"Well," he sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "I want to keep her interested in me. If I don't, she'll end up leaving me for some man with 'really big arms.' " He sighed.

"Sam, I've seen the way she – "

The loud roar of engines cut me off as the Autobots flew by us, skidding to a halt just short of the hangar. Amazed, I pounded over to them; all the 'Bots were in taking large amounts of cool air, resting in their bipedal forms. Mikaela and Sam showed up moments later, out of breath from running.

"So, who won?" Ironhide eagerly asked.

Bee chirped in response, " – I am always victorious – "

"Jazz!" Mikaela responded. Optimus and Ratchet grumbled.

"The human is right," the medic sighed. "Jazz was victorious in this race."

Jazz whooped, jumping around. "That's right bitches; who's the baddest? This 'bot!"

I laughed and joined him in celebration. Even though I didn't win, it was great seeing him so pumped.

"So, what's on the schedule now?" Optimus asked.

"Well, Jazz; you'll have the rest of today and tonight to think up paint-jobs for the Autobots." I smiled. "Sam what do you think we should do?"

"Well, it is lunch time and we humans need to eat." Sam grinned holding his stomach.

"I could go for some energon right now too!" Jazz smiled.

Bee chirped and jumped up, jogging into the hangar. Jazz chased after him and Ratchet followed suit. Ironhide grumbled and walked into the hangar with Sam, Mikaela and I. Halfway to the hangar; I noticed something, or rather, _someone_, missing. I glanced around, seeing Optimus alone, standing by the make-shift starting line (or what was left of it.) My heart fluttered, banging against my rib cage. I was surprised no one noticed it. To me the sound was excruciatingly loud.

"Guys, I'm going to get Optimus." I excused myself after earning a few knowing smiles from the trio.

I jogged up to Optimus, patting his leg. His blue optics shone down on me. Memory of my nightmare flooded back, and I pushed it aside. _Something was bothering Optimus._

"What's wrong boss man?" I asked, leaning against (what I assumed was) his ankle.

He slowly shook his head, "It is nothing."

My eyes narrowed, "Optimus, you don't have to lie. We're friends." The Autobot said nothing, and my immediate thought was, _maybe he thinks we aren't friends._

"We - we are friends, aren't we?" I stuttered, feeling a little less bold.

He nodded, "Delyia, we are friends. You and Sam; along with a few select others, are the only beings I trust on this planet."

"Well if you trust me;" I pressed on, "then you can share what's been bothering you. That's what friends do. They share their problems, and in return the friend is there for the other; whether they can help or not. It's always good to let things out Optimus." Something clicked in my head, "Was it you losing the race and having to go through with the paint-job? Because I'm really sure I can get Jazz to –"

"Delyia." He whispered my name silencing me. "It is not the race or the bet; that is something that means very little to me at the moment."

"Then, what is it boss? I want to help you, that's what friends are for." I gently patted his shin.

He reached his hand down, carefully sliding his cool metallic finger from the crown of my head to the small of my back. I nearly shivered at the coolness of his touch. He then laid his hand out for me to climb on. Without hesitation I sat on his hand and he brought me up to his right shoulder. I settled myself between his chest plate and the heavy wires in the junction between his neck and shoulder; and looked up at him with a questioning gaze.

"I must admit, this is very hard for me to speak of, Delyia." He sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose.

I immediately felt guilt dig its talons in my chest. "Optimus if you don-"

He held up a hand, signaling me to stop and I complied.

"Is this not what friends do; share what is bothering them?" he asked me.

I merely nodded and waited for him to continue.

"Do you remember last night? When I told you about myself?"

I nodded again.

"I wasn't entirely honest. On Cybertron I quickly befriended a femme, Ariel. I thought the world of her and we became, as you say, 'boyfriend and girlfriend.'" _If this situation hadn't been so serious, I would've laughed at Optimus stumbling over the two words._ "We were very happy with our simple life on Cybertron; content with living the life we had for the rest of our days. Over time, the feelings I felt doubled, tripled, quadrupled in their intensity. I was certain that we were to be sparkmates. We would sparkbond, and be with each other until our dying day." He spoke of her so fondly; I thought, smiling to myself. _He clearly loves her to this day._

"So what happened?" I asked softly.

A deep sound rumbled through him; it seemed to be a mix of a growl and a sigh.

"Megatron. After he came and she became Elita-1, I decided to travel here, to Earth, so we may find more energon and hopefully our All Spark. It was a necessary sacrifice for the good of our race." He drew a shaky breath, gathering himself. "I knew she was somewhat angry with me; however we both knew that this was necessary for our survival. It has been millions of stellar-cycles since I have seen her last."

He baritone seemed to hitch as he rubbed his forehead; a pained expression shining through.

"A day does not go by that I do not think of her; of all the wonderful times we shared. It pains my spark deeply to know that I may very well never see her again. For the longest of times I did not know what to do without her. I loved her deeply and when she had died that day – for a moment I, I – "He let out a strangled noise, his shoulders hunched over.

A bright blue droplet of energon broke free from his optic, sliding down his metallic cheek. My heart cracked and shattered into tiny razor-like pieces, cutting up my insides. His love for this Elita-1 was over-powering; his emotions still raw and vulnerable had risen to the surface. I reached up with both hands and wiped the tear away, and in my own way, tried to wipe his pain away. Studying his face for a brief moment, I saw the metal was twisted and scrunched as he tried to stop himself from crying again. The pain this was causing him vibrated through me; to see the leader of the Autobots cry, it wounded me worse than anything I'd ever felt. I wrapped my arms around his neck, attempting to comfort him. I however felt another wet _drop_. I looked up at him, and a few more shining tears escaped. Drawing a shaky breath and wiping my own tears away, I patted his cheek.

"O-Optimus, it's okay to cry. _Everyone_ has to cry at some time in their life; alien robot or not."

He let a deep sigh rumble through and gazed at me, optics swimming with raw emotion. I gave him a small smile and he mustered up a tiny one in return, as one last tear escaped, dropping to the ground beneath us.

"To this day, I know not if she survives or if she is dead, her body laying in wait for someone to find it. Even if she is still online, she could have found another bot to sparkbond with. That is why I was – am so upset. I do not feel right being happy as long as I am away from her. I just – I need to know the truth." He exhaled deeply, and I laid my head against his jaw.

"Optimus, I cannot say for sure if she is alive or not – but, if you loved – _love –_ her as fiercely as you say, then I have no doubts that she, in return, loves you as well." I smiled up at him.

"Delyia," he breathed his mechanical body relaxing. "Thank you."

I waved it off, "No need to thank me; it's why I'm here!"

He shook his head, "No, Delyia what you did for me was not a light matter. I sincerely thank you, Delyia. Every ounce of my spark thanks you."

A light blush dusted my cheeks and I played with my hair sheepishly.

"Well geez Optimus, when you say it like that, it makes me seem like I just saved your life or something."

"Something like that." He smiled down at me and my stomach rumbled.

"I sense that the rumbling in your abdomen means you are hungry, yes?" Optimus asked and I nodded in response.

"Well do not let me keep you any further from your lunch period." He gently sat me back on the ground and I smiled up at him.

"I'll see you after lunch Optimus?" He nodded in response.

I started to walk back to the hangar; but Optimus stopped me.

"Delyia," I turned to look at him; he shuffled his feet.

"I'd appreciate it, if you kept this conversation between _us._ I do believe tha-"

"Already done, Boss-man." I smiled and he nodded once. With that; I continued on my way to lunch.

Optimus stared after the young human, curiosity and content swelled underneath his chest plates. She had no idea how much her just sitting there and listening had helped him; she was right it is healthy to just talk. He sighed, the headache he had from, embarrassingly enough, crying earlier ebbed away. Every time he would think about her, or be in her presence, his spark would swell with care. Delyia had quickly become an important friend to Optimus, he himself was shocked at how close he'd let himself become with the girl. The more he mulled over her, the deeper in thought he became. What would she be like as a Cybertonian? He wondered. Looking up at the stars, his spark ached with longing.

"Elita," he wispily sighed and closed his eyes.

For now, he would not think of Elita-1, when the time is right, the knowledge will come to him of his beloveds whereabouts. He was sure of it; he would be grateful, no matter if the news were good or bad. He selfishly pondered over Elita-1 for a few more astroseconds before turning away, walking to the hangar to get his portion of energon; leaving his thoughts of Elita behind.


	9. Chapter 9

"Oh my God!" I gasped, stifling a laugh.

_Jazz has really outdone himself._ The 'bots all emerged with their new paintjobs for the week, and they couldn't be more embarrassing. First out was Bee; his electric yellow was now an aqua blue, with little yellow and pink bees buzzing around on his hood and trunk. Out off all the paintjobs, Bee's was the least embarrassing. Next out was Ratchet; he was a bright purple, with glowing red hearts scattered across his body. After was Ironhide, he was now a baby pink, with a painted on ballerina tutu across his trunk and delicate ballerina slippers on either side of his doors, and laced ribbon laid out across his hood. By now, Sam and Mikaela were rolling on the ground, clutching their sides and laughing so hard they were crying; I however attempted to remain composed, only letting a few giggles escape here and there. Optimus was the last to come out and he, by far, looked the worst. His cobalt blue was now a robin's egg blue, his flames were now a vast amount of bright pink stars, and he had little sparkles dusting his body. On his driver side door, there was a Decepticon symbol, only it had hearts for eyes and it was smiling. I couldn't hold it in any longer. Roaring with laughter I collapsed next to Sam and Mikaela. I could feel the glares from the four other Autobots slicing into us, however that only made me laugh harder.

After the laughter subsided, along with the side-cramps, we all stood and composed ourselves.

"Honestly, they – Well, they aren't that – uh, you guys look nice?" I managed to squeak out.

Ironhide grumbled, "If Optimus would've allowed it, I would've killed that bag of scraps Jazz."

"Hey, you lost fair and square! Don't be sore losers!" I scolded the now pink robot.

Jazz rolled in and transformed, his optics widened and an enormous grin painted his metallic face.

"You guys look like slaggin' slag."

Ironhide snapped; with a roar he transformed, tackling Jazz. 'Hide threw punch after punch and Jazz squirmed around trying to dodge them. Ratchet leapt onto Ironhide, pulling him off of Jazz and throwing him to the other side of the hangar. Optimus and Bee transformed as well, the taller of the two turned to scold Ironhide.

"I find this about as amusing as you do Ironhide; however Delyia is correct. We lost the race and we all agreed on the bet. This paint should only last us a few days and then after that we will be repainted to our rightful colors. Besides, we are the only ones who are going to see this, atrocity." Optimus shuddered.

"Thank Primus we're the only ones." Ratchet mumbled.

Just then, a loud bang resounded as Lennox whirled in, appearing next to all of us. He stared at the Autobots in shock,

"What – You know, I don't want to know. Optimus, a new Autobot has just been detected. You guys need to ready yourselves up and go retrieve him."

I felt my jaw drop, _now?_ I knew Sam and Mikaela were thinking the same things as I when we exchanged glances. Ironhide roared, pounding a fist into the floor. Jazz flinched and backed away. Ratchet sighed, and turned to Optimus,

"Are we leaving now then?"

Optimus reluctantly nodded and all the Autobots transformed back into their altmodes. Sam went up to Bee, exchanging a few words. I walked to Optimus, and patted his hood.

"Be careful okay?"

Optimus flashed his lights. "I swear to Primus that I shall be careful and return as fast as I can."

"That's all I can ask for." I smiled at the Peterbilt and walked back to Mikaela; Sam returning shortly after.

"Delyia! You want to have a 'girls night'?!" Mikaela gasped.

I nodded, "Sure, it's not like we are going to have anything to do! Might as well make the most of it!"

"Hey!" Sam interjected, "What about me?!"

"You can be one of the girls tonight if you want to." I laughed.

Sam grumbled, "I guess I could work out or something."

I raised an eyebrow, "You? Work out? When – "

"Delyia! I work out _all the time._" He hissed; I caught on.

"Oh right! Silly me I forgot all about that!" I smiled and looped my arm through Mikaela's.

"Shall we?" I laughed.

"Let's do this."

Mikaela and I made a list of things done _supposedly_ at a girls night. Neither of us having many girl friends; we had little experience. We gave each other manicures and pedicures, stole popcorn from the kitchens and watched movies. We also made make-shift face masks and placed cucumbers over our eyes while relaxing our feet in hot water.

"Tonight was probably one of the most relaxing I've ever had." Mikaela sighed as leaned back in our chairs, the masks cleansing our pores.

I hummed in agreement, the sound of some pop-music played in the background.

"Maybe we should take these off now, it's been fifteen minutes and I read you're only supposed to have this on for, maybe ten." Mikaela suggested.

Deciding that was probably the right idea, we both washed off the masks and cleaned up.

"You want to just do the whole shabang and stay the night in my room? We can just watch movies till we fall asleep!" I asked her and she nodded.

"Yeah sure! Just let me go put pajamas on first, I'll be right back!"

She returned a few minutes later;and not too long after settling into a movie, Sam burst through the door.

"Guys they brought the new Autobots."

With one shared look, we all took off to the hangar, all of us eager to meet our new Autobot companions. What would they be like? Would they be sophisticated and intelligent like Optimus? Would they be brash and strong like Ironhide? Or maybe they'd be extremely intelligent and advanced as Ratchet? I was hoping for a 'bot similar to Bee's persona, kind, friendly and funny. We arrived at the hangar and loud voices were heard.

"Dangit! Skids I tol' you not tuh mess wit' 'em! Now look at us! We's lookin' super trashy now cause uh you!"

We burst into the hangar to see two smaller robots; they were smaller than Bee! They were mirror images of each other; bug eyed, buck teeth and small rounded bodies. Even if they seemed a little round, they both still had strong builds and I could tell they both could handle themselves in a battle. Both their eyes were set on us as we walked up to our Autobot friends. I glanced around at them, they all seemed extremely annoyed.

"Hey ya ther' fleshlins! I'm Mudflap, an' this here is my glitch of a brother, Skids." One of them spoke up.

"Ay! You son of a slaggin' – " Ironhide slammed his fists on both their heads.

I giggled and smiled, "I'm Delyia, it's awesome to meet more Autobots. I've never met twins before. This is Sam and Mikaela." I introduced them.

Skids grinned and looked at his brother. "See, she happy t'see me! Unlike your sorry ass!"

I noticed then, they both weren't as _sleek_ as the other bots.

"How come you guys don't turn into new fancy cars like the rest?" Mikaela questioned before me.

Mudflap sighed, "Well, we was just walkin' around and suddenly, Optimus n' crew bounced outta no where and foun' us. Now tell me somethin' girly, if _you_ see a buncha' robots waltzin' around lookin' like fresh outta the belly sparkling femmes, wouldn't you laugh too?"

I nodded, "I probably would, yeah."

"That's why we's being punished. I guess they took it t'heart tha' we laughed at 'em an' now we're stuck being an' ice cream truck! I don' even get t'be my own damn car!" Skids groaned, slapping himself.

Ratchet grabbed the twins and started to drag them away,  
"Come on you sparklings, I have to check your status before I'm allowed to let you roam free."

The twins groaned but allowed Ratchet to drag him away, we turned our attention to our other robots. Optimus was as bright as ever, and his paint sparkled as he laid his hand out for me to climb onto. I followed the routine, squeezing myself in the junction between his neck and shoulder; he walked out of the hangar and sat off to the side.

"How was your evening?" He asked, his blue optics shone down on me.

I smiled up at him, "Pretty fun, me and Mikaela had a girls night."

He cocked his head to the side. "A 'girls night?' What is a 'girls night'?"

"Well, a girl's night is when females usually get together and do something they want to do. For instance, manicures and pedicures; or going to see a romantic movie. Something like that."

"Ah, I see. What are manicures and pedicures?" he stumbled over the foreign words.

"You see these?" I held up my hands, using my fingers to point to my nails; he nodded.

"Women on this planet take joy in looking beautiful, twenty-four seven, and a way to do that is by painting our nails in bright colors!" I smiled.

Optimus hummed in understanding, "I see."

We sat in a comfortable silence, gazing up at the stars.

"I like the twins," I giggled. "They seem like they can get on your nerves fast though."

Optimus sighed and nodded, "They can be trying at times. However, they're very strong together during battle. Even at times keeping us all entertained during the early stages of this war."

I nodded, "Speaking of which, how are you doing Boss? Are you feeling any better from the other day?"

He simply nodded and picked me up, setting me on the ground gently; I looked up at him in confusion.

"It is late Delyia. Humans need to rest more often than us; is that not correct?"

"Yeah, that's true, but Optimus I'm not-"

"You should get some rest Delyia; I have to get some work done with the twins anyway. I shall see you tomorrow." He gently ran his finger over me, and turned to walk away.

I watched him in pure astonishment. _I think I said something wrong. Note to self; never bring up Elita-1._ I sighed, heading back in the hangar, and hung out with Mikaela, Sam, Bee and Jazz. I was there in body, however my mind ran a mile a minute thinking about a certain leader 'bot 'taking care of paperwork. Everyone could tell something was bothering me, and Jazz finally addressed the elephant in the room.

"What's bothering you Delyia? Ever since you and Optimus talked you've been _off_."

Bee chirped, _"_- is there something wrong captain?"

Mikaela and Sam put their hands on my shoulders, "You know you can tell us anything Deli." Sam grinned at my childhood nickname.

"I thought we agreed never to call each other our childhood nicknames, Tammy." Sam flushed red as Mikaela coughed trying to cover up her laugh.

"Tammy?" She asked.

"Well, when we were young he used to call me Deli, and one day I had enough and decided to call him by a girls name. Tammy was pretty close to Sammy to I decided his new name would be Tammy."

"Getting back onto the original subject," Sam coughed. "What's wrong?"

"Oh it's nothing. I think I just upset him by prying; he'll get over it." I smiled.

"Yeah, boss-man doesn't let light stuff bother him for too long. He'll be good in an hour or so." Jazz grinned, bumping me with his finger.

"Yeah yeah; I'm going to bed. Night guys." I hugged them all, and headed to my own room for a night of well deserved rest.


	10. Chapter 10

**Thank you everyone for being so patient! I'm SO SORRY this chapter is short but i wanted the battle to be in a separate chapter. I also apologize for any mistakes made, i'm posting this without letting my Beta get to it first because i haven't posted in so long. So here is a little taste, i'll try to have the next chapter up tomorrow! But i would like to say thanks to Bee4ever for all the ideas you gave me for this chapter, THANK YOU.**

**I hope you enjoy ~**

"Lennox are you serious?" I groaned, _of all the things I was ever sent out to d-_

"Oh quit whining Delyia," Lennox laughed at me, "It's not that bad. All you're doing is going to a few stores and picking up things we'll need at the base. It isn't that bad, only maybe 3 or 4 things at the most." He handed me a list.

I read the list aloud, "Floor cleaner JUMBO SIZED? Candy and snacks? Toilet paper? Car wash?"

Disbelief scrawled over my face I rolled my eyes, "Lennox are you sure this isn't for you?"

He shook his head, "it's what the soldiers wanted, I _swear_."

I huffed, defeated. "Well how am I going to get there? I don't have a car."

Lennox smiled, "Follow me."

We walked down the twisting hallways until we reached the Autobots hangar; stepping inside Lennox yelled getting everyones attention,

"Who's going to take Delyia to get some supplies?!"

All of the Autobots stepped forward to offer their help; Lennox snickered while I blushed, neither of us expected them to step forward to readily.

"Well atleast we know she's well liked on this base." Lennox smiled. "However, as much as I'd like to send all of you out, that would be suspicious and we need Optimus, Ironhide, and Jazz on base for a meeting. So, twins I think you two should go, it'll help you get to know the city better."

The twins grinned, "Aw hell yeah!" they both screamed in unison.

"Wait, which one is the lady gonna ride in?" Mudflap questioned.

I shrugged, "Which ever, I don't mind."

Skids jumped up, "I think she'll b'more comfortable if she rides in my cabin." Skids wriggled his metallic eyebrows.

"Nah man, she'd be more relaxed wi' me!" Mudflap buffed up.

"You dumb man!" Skids tackled Muflap, wrestling him to the ground.

I waving my hands I yelled, "Alright! I'll ride with skids on the way there, and then I can ride back in Mudflap. So everyone gets a chance!"

The twins grumbled and agrees, shifting to their alt-forms. I hopped in Skids and we took off to the city. The ride there consisted of me telling them about human life and why we bathed as much as we do. For a highly intelligent alien species, they really were in the dark about humans and how we lived. Out of the two, I couldn't decide which one I liked better; they both made me laugh, _a lot._ Beneath their strange exterior we're two regular, as regular as robots can be, Autobots that were all fighting for the same reason. Skids, Mudflap and I all arrived in the city about an hour of driving, I had to lead the twins around because we had no idea where these stores were that lennox was attempting to guide us too.

We spent about another half an hour driving, lost; we finally found the store we were looking for and I quickly hopped out.

"I'll be right back!" I told them.

I glanced around the street, feeling watched, but no one was paying any attention. A police car sat on the corner, the officer inside watching people as they passed and citizens clogged up the sidewalks. Shrugging it off I went inside to buy the items. After I bought what I could, I jogged out of the store and up to Skids, I threw the things in his trunk then jumped in Mudflap. As we drove, Mudflap spoke up,

"So, what d'ya want your nickname t'be girly?"

I snorted, "Nickname? Whats wrong with my real name?"

"Well," Mudflap started, "I can't call you Delyia all the time! Sounds too damn formal! What about DD, er, what about possum or somethin'! "

"What kind of nicknames are those?"

"I – " Mudflap crashed into something, causing us to fly, roll and tumble down a dirt road.

_Thank God we made it out of the city before something like that happened._ I thought graciously as I wiped the blood from my forehead. A small cut formed itself in the middle, along with a few minor scrapes and newly forming bruises dotting the rest of my body. I groaned, stepping out of the twin as he transformed; his brother was already heading for us.

"W-what happened?" I massaged my now pounding head.

That's when I saw the police car, sitting in idle, a few meters away; across its side read "To punish and enslave." Panic seared through my veins as my brain put two and two together, _Decepticon._ As if reading my thoughts, the car transformed into Barricade. He snarled at us and Mudflap and Skids stood between Barricade and I.

"You ain't getting' our girl!" Skids yelled.

"Yeah ya want her?! You gotta get through us first!" Mudflap smugly shot out.

"Guys you have to call for back-up." I whispered, the twins nodded.

"My pleasure." Barricade hissed, bearing his weapons.

"Come on then ya pussy!" Skids whooped.

Barricade stormed towards us, and my heart sank.

_Why do I feel like this isn't going to end well?_


	11. Chapter 11

** dealing with the shortness that was chapter 10, here 11 :D I posted this through my phone so I feel accomplished hahahaha. Thanks to everyone that favorited and followed. Special thanks to Bee4Ever, shes The best! **

**Enjoy~**

As Barricade barreled toward us, I drove behind a group of trees for cover. I couldn't do anything but watch as Mudflap and Skids tag teamed the Decepticon, dodging moves but landing few. Barricade roared and grabbed Skids by his head, thrashing him around before tossing him a few yards away. Mudflap, enraged, tackled Barricade to the ground. Barricade pointed his cannon at Mudflap, it glowed an acid blue as it hummed. Before he shot, Skids came and rammed into the Decepticon, causing the Decepticon to shoot at random. As the shots were fired, I crouched lower to ground, trying to avoid the stray blasts of energy. _Where is everyone?_ A shot flew above me, disintegrating the parts of the trees it hit; I squealed and ran out from behind the cover. Barricade and I made optic to eye contact as he fought off the twins. Barricade slammed the two into each other and threw them aside once more; the twins lay on the ground unmoving. My heart thumped wildly in my chest. _He's coming for me next, I just know it._

Without thinking, I dashed in the opposite direction, my small legs carrying me as fast as my body would let them. _I have to get away, I have to get away,_ repeated in my head as I darted from the scene. Suddenly I felt something cool wrap around me and lift me up. Screaming and thrashing I struggled against whoever had me.

"Stop resisting or I will not hesitate to kill you. I could care less what happens to you, little fleshling." Barricade growled.

I froze, my heart hammered against my ribs as I turned around to see Barricade's red optics glaring down at me. The touch of a Decepticon is so different than that of an Autobots; with an Autobot's touch there is love and care, the metal doesn't feel lifeless and _dead;_ but a Decepticon's is rough and uncaring; _it hurt._ I struggled to breathe as Barricade transformed into his alt-form, switching on his lights and speeding off. I sat uncomfortably in the passenger seat, watching the city go by; my body willing me to scream and yell for anyone to save me, but my heart was too frightened to allow it. I silently prayed for someone, anyone to come and rescue me. _Optimus; Optimus Prime I swear to God if you allow me to be captured and taken away, I'll cut all of your wires! _I screamed in my mind, hoping that somehow the leader-bot would hear me.

"I sense you're nervous human; you can stop scratching up my leather. I have orders not to kill you." Barricade rumbled through his radio.

"W-Where are you taking me?" I questioned.

"That's none of your concern." He replied.

"It _is_ my concern, since you've hurt my friends and kidnapped me!" I yelled; however he didn't reply.

I huffed and stared out the window, my heart and mind racing a mile per minute. We left Mission City and were traveling across a vast amount of country, when Barricade suddenly transformed; throwing me across a field of grass. I tumbled and knocked around as I rolled away from wherever Barricade was. I groaned, rubbing my head; the screeching and clashing of metal capturing my attention. Jazz swung, landing a strong punch against Barricade's head, flinging Barricade back a few yards.

"Jazz!" I screamed with relief. _I'm saved!_

Barricade tackled Jazz to the ground and they wrestled; each of them throwing punches, sometimes landing one, sometimes missing. Movement to the far right caught my eye; a tall jet black 'bot with large cannons, a yellow emergency medic 'bot, a yellow camaro, and a 32 foot tall red and blue 'bot came charging at Barricade and Jazz. I smiled as hot tears flung themselves from my eyes; _they all came to rescue me. _Optimus and the Autobots fought against Barricade, however Barricade proved to be a match for all of them. Bumblebee pulled in front of me and opened the door, Sam and Mikaela waited inside. I jumped in and Bee sped off. Sam pulled me into a tight hug.

"I'm never going to let you leave my sight, ever." Sam murmured.

"Are you okay D?" Mikaela asked as she gave me a hug.

"Shaken, but fine now that Bee and the 'bots came to save me." I smiled, wiping the tears away.

Looking in the rear view mirror I saw the other Autobots in pursuit, however Barricade was nowhere to be found. _He's gone._ I grinned, but then something dawned on me,

"Wait; where's Skids and Mudflap?" I asked, they weren't with the Autobots.

Sam looked at me with pity, "They're back on base already, in the infirmary. Both of them are in critical condition, but Ratchet had stabilized them for the most part before we came after you."

I let out a strangled cry before putting my face in my hands, trying to hide my shame. "This is all my fault!"

Mikaela forced me to look at her, "Now listen, this isn't your fault, not one percent. So don't you dare go around saying it is. Not for one second you hear me?"

`I merely nodded, afraid if I spoke, I'd start to cry. Mikaela let me go, and we were silent the rest of the ride.

When we got to base, everyone drove into the hangar; and Mikaela, Sam and I piled out of Bee. Ratchet left shortly after arriving to take care of the twins. I nervously shuffled my feet as the Autobots transformed, all their eyes on me. Jazz was the first one to make any movement; he ran his finger down my back as reassurance and tears threatened to fall again. I took a deep breath and centered myself as Optimus stepped forward.

"What happened?"

"I went for a joy ride with a Decepticon; what do you _think_ happened?" I retorted.

Optimus pinched the bridge of his nose and exhaled heavily. "I _know, _but what happened?"

"When we entered Mission City, I noticed a cop car, but thought nothing of it. I went in the store and bought the items Lennox needed then exited, jumping in Mudflap. We barely made it out of the city before Barricade attacked." My voice cracked, and I tried to hold it together. "He knocked the twins out and came for me, grabbing me and transforming into a car. He took off and drove me to where you guys came and defeated him. That's all that happened." A tear slid down my face.

Optimus' blue optics held something I couldn't identify, "Are you sure that's all? He didn't say anything to you?"

"No."

"Are you _sure?"_ Optimus pushed, I felt my chest tighten.

"Are you calling me a _liar_?"

"No; I'm merely asking if you have shared all the information with us. This is of great importance Delyia." Not even the sound of my name could tame the wild anger inside my chest.

"How _dare_ you Optimus! I was just _kidnapped_ in case you weren't aware! I was tossed around and thrown inside a Decepticon! And now you're calling me a _liar – "_

_"_I never said you were – "

_Shut up!_. It was implied. Optimus I'm not stupid! How can you be so cold? Instead of asking me if I'm okay, you just harass me for _fucking _information; and when I tell you all I know you think I'm hiding something!" I sighed; not wanting to say anything I might regret, I turned around and stalked to the door.

"Where are you going?" He demanded.

"Anywhere away from _you!_" I snarled, striking him with my eyes, before storming out and slamming the door behind me.


	12. Chapter 12

**Special thanks to bee4ever as usual! She gave me the idea for the next few chapters. Sometimes i feel like she should be writing this story.. hahaha! (: I just wrote an Optimus/Delyia One-shot and i'm thinking about posting it, i'm not sure. :) However, thanks to everyone for reviewing/favoriting/following! (: It's much appreciated and gets me going through the day,**

**Enjoy chapter 12 everyone ~**

Sighing, I fell back onto my bed, shutting my eyes and pretending no one else in the world existed. Skids and Mudflap had been in the med bay for a week now, and every day I went to the med bay to check up on them. Ratchet assured me every time that they were going to be okay and that he'd send for me when they woke up, but I couldn't stay away. I felt completely responsible for every scratch and nick that they had; it was because of me that they'd been hurt. To make everything worse, I was still upset with Optimus and I went out of my way to make sure I didn't see him. I ran into him once and it hadn't gone over so well.

_I walked into the hangar; Jazz had been on my mind a lot because I'd never gotten to fully thank him for saving me from Barricade. As I walked in the hangar, I spotted Optimus on the other side in his alt-form. I ignored him, still fuming from the other day's events; and hugged Jazz. I smiled up at him._

_"Jazzy!"_

_The bot smiled back down at me; "What's crackin' D?"_

_"I just wanted to say thank you for the other day. You saved me; and I didn't have a chance to tell you how much it means to me until now. So thank you."_

_I gave his metal shin a loving tap, and he ran his metallic finger down my back._

_"It's no problem D, it's what friends do!" He laughed._

_I heard the whir of gears and metal shifting. I knew Optimus was transforming and I hoped he wouldn't walk over here; however fate loved to tease me. Optimus stalked over to us and coughed, or at least as good as a robot could._

_"Delyia, may I have a word with you?" He asked me._

_I secretly rolled my eyes before turning around and nodding, Optimus lead me over to a corner of the hangar._

_"Now, about the other day, I know you seemed to think – "_

_I held up my hand, interrupting him._

_"Unless I'm getting an extensive apology I don't want to hear anything about it Optimus."_

_"I think that's very unfair of you Delyia –"_

_I knew I wasn't getting an apology anytime soon; so I walked out of the hangar, not wanting to hear any more of his robotic bullshit._

I hadn't been back to the hangar since then, because I didn't want to run into Optimus. Sam and Mikaela kept me company as we ran errands on base; since the incident, they hadn't let any of us off of the base. A little piece of me died every day I didn't see Jazz or Bumblebee, hell I even missed Ironhide and his cannons. But I couldn't stand seeing Optimus again; the scars were still too fresh. I would just have to wait it out, until they faded. Finally, one morning Sam came bursting into my room, yanking me out of some TV show I was watching.

"Hey! What the hell do you think you're doing Sammy?!" I pulled my hand away.

"They're awake!"

That's all he needed to say before I took off down the hallway, storming into the med bay and throwing myself on the twins. I sobbed and laughed all at once as the twins each wrapped an arm delicately around me.

"Jeeze Skids, 'f I woulda known she woulda miss'd us so much, I woulda considered shit like this a long time ago." Mudflap laughed.

"Stop cryin' already Dede, we're good." Skids patted me on the head.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you guys, I swear I'll make up for it." I sighed, rubbing the tears away.

The twins looked at each other and laughed.

"Girlie, none of this was your fault. You ain't got nothing to make-up for!" Skids replied.

"But I do; I – "

"Girlie, this isn't your fault and we don't wanna hear any more of it!" Mudflap silenced me.

"It is truly an honor to have you two back." A baritone boomed from behind me.

My heart swelled, and my chest tightened; I should've known _he'd_ be here. I wasn't ready to see him yet. Without turning around, I raced out of the med bay and shot straight back into my room.

~3rd Pov~

Back in the med bay, the twins looked around at the bots, confused.

"What jus' happened?" Mudflap asked.

Optimus exhaled, pinching the bridge of his nose as always.

"I'm afraid Delyia and I had a misunderstanding and she'd taken it to heart. I've tried to explain myself and she refuses to listen to me. So I'm waiting for her to calm down and come talk to me; although it seems as if that will not be happening any time soon."

Skids and Mudflap glanced at each other worriedly; Sam told everyone he'd try to talk to her, so he raced out after her. Mikaela thought she should go too, considering she was the only other female on base and Delyia might listen to her as well; so she ran out following after Sam. The Autobots all stood alone in the med bay. Ironhide sighed;

"I don't understand why you worry yourself over a single human, Prime."

Optimus looked at him with confusion, and Ironhide spoke again.

"I care for her deeply; however I haven't seen you fret over anything like this in a long time."

Now the rest of the Autobots turned and looked at Optimus; they all had been wondering the same thing. Optimus only shook his head and sighed.

"She is, or at least was, a close friend to me; no matter how short of a time period I've known her. To see any of my friends upset, upsets me as well. 'Hide you already know this."

"I know; I'm merely curious is all." Ironhide shrugged.

"There's nothing to be curious about." Optimus stated before stalking away.

All the Autbots looked at each other; they all knew.

" – He cares deeply for her." Bee scanned through the radio.

Jazz nodded, " I think she cares for him, too."

"They're both too stubborn to realize it." Ironhide grumbled. "I believe it's best that way; it would be disgusting. They're two separate species. It needs to stay that way if you ask me."

"No one asked you 'Hide." Skids snickered. Ironhide knocked him over the head.

"Ow; the hell!"

"You all better stay out of their business!" Ironhide warned the Autobot group.

~Delyia POV~

I threw myself onto my bed, curling up into a ball. I hated the fact that he made me feel so insecure. I hugged my pillow close and laid there, not thinking. A few minutes passed before a soft knock was heard from my doorway.

"Come in." I breathed.

Sam and Mikaela walked into my room, sitting on either side of me; both of them setting a hand on my shoulders.

"Do you want to talk D?" Sam asked.

I shook my head; "Not really."

"Well, what's going on between you and Optimus?" Mikaela asked.

I shrugged, "Nothing; Nothing besides what happened last week. You both were there for that."

"D, I don't think Optimus mean to call you a liar; I think you just interpreted it wrong." Sam consoled.

I frowned, "No. He called me a liar, flat out. I'm not dealing with that shit; not from anyone or any_thing_."

Sam sighed, "I really don-"

"Sam; if all you came here to talk to me about was Optimus, there is no point. I don't want to talk about him. I love you, but now isn't the time." I hugged him.

Sam dropped the subject for now. We all spent a few hours in my room chatting about random things; and watching some shows, before everyone turned in for the night.

The next day started normal, we all did our runs for the NEST team and took our lunch break. Sam and Mikaela went to the hangar, and I went to my room; I didn't want to see Optimus. Half an hour into our break, Mickey and Sammy came into my room, both of them out of breath.

"The Autobots went out to find another 'bot! Apparently he crash landed just last night, and not too far away from here." Sam hurriedly spat out.

My heart thumped loud in my chest; "Who went?"

"Optimus, Jazz, Ironhide, and Ratchet."

"Oh alright; that's awesome. So do you want to just spend the rest of break with Bumblebee?" The twins were still in the med bay being watched.

"Aren't you worried about Optimus?" Mikaela questioned.

I cocked my head, "Why would I be?"

She looked shocked for a split second. "Well; I mean, he's going off base and he's going to be in danger."

I waved my hand, dismissing the thought. "He's 32 feet tall, and leader of the Autobots. I'm sure he can take care of himself. Plus, he has four other 'bots will him, or at least he will have four."

"I'm surprised; considering the last time he left you were practically in pieces." Sam stated as we walked to the hangar to hang with Bee.

I shrugged; "I guess I'm used to it? I don't know."

When we got to the hangar Bee chirped happily and did a little dance.

" – It's so good to finally see you darling – " his radio hummed.

I laughed and patted his leg. "I've missed you Bee."

He chirped before patting my head with his finger.

We hung out with Bee the remainder of our break, laughing and joking around. We even had a belching war; _have you ever heard an Autobot burp? It's definitely an experience._ The rest of the day passed on without incident; however the Autbots hadn't returned from their mission yet. Worry blossomed in my chest as I thought about them before I turned in for the night. _Where could they be?_

Someone shook me awake; groggily I slapped the hand away and looked at the alarm clock; **12:05.** Turning on the lamp, I saw Mikaela, she stood in front of me, panic etched in her features.

"What's going on; why'd you wake me up?" I complained.

"It's Optimus;" Mikaela breathed. My heart dropped.

"W-Whats wrong?"

"He's in stasis-lock, and in critical condition!" She cried out.

"What's that?" I was confused. "Is that bad?"

"It's like a coma; Ratchet doesn't know if he'll make it out." She sighed, wiping away a stray tear.

My heart cracked open; and all the raw anger and hurt faded away immediatly; spilling from what felt like a large, gaping hole in my chest.

_No!_


	13. Chapter 13

**If my beautiful Beta wouldforgive me, I'm just do anxious to post this chapter!(: I'm not good at leaving you all with cliffhangers, but I tried! (: I know I posted this without my Beta editing it, soitalllll Raw. I couldn'tawait I'm very impatient. Forgive me! Thank you to everyone that favorites followed and or reviewed. You're amazingz **

**Enjoy ~**

The world stopped, everything happening as if we were all made of lead. In a panic, I darted out of the room; tears prickling behind my eyes. With every step I took the pain in my chest increased, Mikaelas words echoed through my mind, _Ratchet doesn't know if he'll make it out._ He doesn't know if he'll live. The thought of the Autobot being taken down terrified me; to me they were invincible nothing could ever bring them down. So when I burst into the med bay for the second time in a day, my heart broke, _really_ broke when I saw Optimus.

He laid there motionless, his normal bright blue eyes were now faintly glowing, his limbs were placed neatly next to sides. He looked – he looked almost, like he were dead. Eyes wide as saucers I looked around at everyone, Sam, Ironhide, Jazz, the twins, Bee and Ratchet; that's when I noticed someone new, a shiny silver robot stood in the corner. I, however, did not care at the moment and ran over Optimus, when I reached him I was almost scared to touch him, out of fear that one wrong move and he would break. I looked up at Ratchet, questions burning in my mind, I didn't know how to ask them.

"Ratchet – "

"We were ambushed by four Decepticons as we were heading to retrieve Sideswipe." _So that was his name._ "Optimus tried to take on all four by himself, sending the three of us to get Sideswipe without him – "

"And you just _left_ him there?" I asked incredulously, Ratchet growled at me.

"He is our _leader_ we have to do as he says. _Anyway_, when we returned he was loosing the battle so Sideswipe abd everyone else joined trying to defeat the bastards. However one of the little scraps managed to land a hard blow to Optimus near his spark, he went into stasis-lock and has been like this ever since." He sighed. "I don't know why this happened, usually incidents such as this doesn't happen, _ever_. This is a rare case indeed. However there's nothing really _wrong_ so there isn't anything anyone can do but sit by a wait for him to come online again."

"There's _nothing_ you can do?! Surly there has to be something?!" I pressed.

Ratchet looked like he was going to go into stasis-lock himself,

"Don't you think if I _knew_ a way to bring him out I _would?_" He asked me.

I nodded, feeling foolish for even asking; my eyes trailed to Optimus again. My heart tore itself apart as I looked over him. I couldn't help but take the blame, if I hadn't been so stubborn and just heard him out, maybe that would've changed things.

_Do you really think you affected him that badly, that he would be distracted in battle?_ A voice echoed inside my head. _That fight, meant nothing._ I shook the thoughts away and brought a chair up next to his head, I laid my own against his. I willed him to wake up,

"You _have to wake up,_ I have to apologize to you." I whispered to him.

There I stayed, for the remainder of the week; I never left his side. Sam would bring me my meals and he and Mikaela would eat with me, sometimes Bee and/or Jazz would join us as well. Sam eventually brought me blankets and a pillow when he'd found out that I'd been sleeping there. Ratchet tried to get me to leave but I adamantly refused; he eventually gave up trying to persuade me. Every day I would tell him how apologetic I was, how much it hurt me to see my friend this way, how remorseful I was, _how hard it was for me not being able to talk to him._ I cried over him often during the first few days; after however, the tears dried. I only gazed at his motionless form, taking in and analyzing everything about him; every scratch, every mark and every dent. I wanted it all to be engrained in my mind. More than anything, I wanted Optimus to be okay. I wanted him to stand up, hold me in his hand and tell me tales of his adventures, of his life. I wanted my friend back.

It was about a week later, when Sam stormed into the med bay, taking me by the arm and forcing me to make eye contact with him.

"Dammit! You can't keep living like this! You _have_ to move on with your life!" Sam yelled, I only sat and watched as he continued to yell. "Everyone is worried about you, even _Ratchet_ asked me if you were okay! You know what I said?! I don't know, she _doesn't tell me anything anymore._ In fact, you haven't spoken to anyone in days! This ends now, I love you and I won't see you through yourself away just because Optimus is in a coma. Knock It Off!" He shook me.

I glared at him, "Sam how can you expect me to just get over this!? It's like me loosing you! It's terrifying and I – I," I broke into tears, holding myself trying to regain some control. " I can't loose him, he's my _friend. _I care about him so much Sam." I whispered so quietly I didn't think I'd spoken at all.

Sam wrapped his arms around me, I stood encased in his arms while the tears melted down my face. I needed Optimus alive, and I wasn't entirely sure why.

A few more days had passed, Sam tried to get me to leave however I stood firm. He instead settled for sitting with me for an hour, every day, and talking with me. Mikaela would come when she could but with me missing in action, she helped out by doing my work as well. At first, Sam and I would sit and he would talk about his day, soon I was joining in on the conversation, adding comments here and there. Now, I would talk to him as normally as I could, never having an awkward silence; just like how we used to be. I had to admit I missed my best friend, I'd forgotten how much we needed one another. Sam kept me grounded, kept me from going insane; he was truly the one person I could count on no matter what the situation.

Today Ratchet came into the med bay as usual, checking up on other patients he had in the area. However, unexpectedly, he came over to Optimus and gave him a check-up.

"It's just to make sure he's doing okay." Ratchet assured me.

The rest of that morning went by as every other morning had, I'd told Optimus good morning leaving only for a minute to brush my teeth etc. I returned and sat by him, telling him about the dream I'd had that night; I'd dreamt he'd wake up. I sighed, laying my head against the side of his chest plate and relished in the cool feel of his form.

"I miss you." I whispered.

It was then I felt movement, startled I jumped up; my eyes raked over his body. I searched his limbs for signs of movement, minutes passed and nothing happened. I concluded that I was going crazy and probably needed some more sleep, I laid out my bed and rested my eyes trying to take a quick nap to calm my beating heart.

"Delyia." A baritone whisper fluttered by,; I twitched as my heart fluttered again, _this must be a dream._

It was when I felt a nudge that my eyes shot open, Sam was poking my side. My heart sank, it _was_ only a dream. Sighing, I shrugged myself out of the blanket, standing up.

"What Sam?" I asked him, my hopes put me in a cranky state.

"I have a surprise." He grinned and I looked at him with empty surprise. I was sure he hadn't had the surprise I wanted.

"Turn around, close your eyes and cover your ears." I did as he asked.

I faintly heard some shuffling around and a slight wind from behind me. I felt Sam's hands on my arms as he turned me around and tapped my shoulder. I opened my eyes and gasped, _No way…_


	14. Chapter 14

**I can't remember if i posted today or not... hahaha~ i don't care here's another! (: Edited by my lovely beta of courrrse _Bee4ever._ You guys should check out her stories i really really like them :3 they're so entertaining! Anyways, thanks to everyone that followed, favorited, and reviewed. I appreciate it so much! **

**& To the review that wanted fluff, i hope this is enough for one chapter, i'm trying to keep things. . _minimal_ between the two for right now ;)**

**Enjoy~**

I couldn't believe it; there he stood in all his 32 feet of Autobot glory. _Optimus Prime_, the leader of the Autobots, kneeled and leveled his head to match my own. I couldn't speak, only stare stupidly as I took him in. Everything was how I left it when he were barely living, except for now his eyes were full of life, and swirled with a plethora of emotions. They were the glowing blue I'd remembered. My body, desperately confused, didn't know whether to run and hug him, or stay where it stood. Consequently, the first had won and I threw myself onto his gigantic face; my small form only taking up is chin and my head lay below his lower lip. I bit back tears as I wrapped my arms as well as I could around his face, pressing myself closer to him. He brought a metallic hand close; encasing me, holding me, as I stood there reveling in his presence. I heard him lightly chuckle; and I stepped back a little to look into his large optics. His lips were upturned and I did the same; as I did, the pressure behind my eyes increased and I let the tears freely flow.

"Optimus. . " I choked out, I couldn't say anymore.

"Delyia, why are you crying? Has something happened to upset you?" As he spoke, his voice flooded into me, sending waves of warmth through me.

"Well, besides you almost dying, no." I placed a hand on his cheek. "I thought you were going to die."

Optimus cocked his head, "And this greatly upset you?"

I nearly fell over in shock. "Of course it did! You're my friend; and I couldn't handle the thought of someone else I'm close to leaving me." I quivered.

His eyes scanned over my small body, and he exhaled air before running his thumb down my back. He lightly nudged me, and I looked up at him, making optic-to-eye contact.

"Delyia, I will never leave you, unless you ask it of me." His face serious.

"Do you promise?" I suddenly felt as if I were five again, young and naive.

"I promise." He nodded and stood, but not before holding out his hand for me to climb on.

I joyfully sat in my place on his shoulder, and turned to look at Sam.

"Samuel, we're going to have a lot to talk about soon." I warned him. He grinned before walking out of the med bay.

I turned to Optimus as he started to walk. "Where are we going, boss?"

He glanced at me, "You'll see."

I giggled and snuggled in his shoulder, my toes intertwining themselves in his wires. His body seemed to hum as he walked, through the hangar, and outside. I looked around at the Autobots and none of them seemed surprised. _Did everyone already know Optimus was alive, except me?_ The Autobot leader strode a few yards away from the hangar. Coming to a stop at a lone tree, he sat and I gazed up at the sky. There were few clouds; however in the distance I spotted some threatening storm clouds. It was almost scenic, the way the clouds billowed and puffed, through and around each other. I turned to the lone tree, it stood strong and proud with branches full of beautiful green leaves. Looking closer, I saw some luscious peaches entangled in the branches of the tree, and my mouth watered; _I love peaches._

"So, what are we doing out here, Optimus?" I asked, looking up.

"I thought we might simply sit and talk; _catch up_ as you would say. I do confess, I have missed being able to converse with you. I felt terrible not being able to reply to all that you told me during my stasis mode." He exhaled and looked at me with a shyness I only assumed was from him saying something so personal.

Then it hit me. "You _heard_ everything I said!" I squeaked.

He nodded, "Yes I did; when in a stasis mode such as that, I am still able to hear everything that goes on around me. However, I cannot respond."

My face flushed and I hid myself from his gaze. "Oh my God; so that means you heard – "

"Your numerous apologies, all the wondrous stories you told, and the little greetings every morning." He chuckled, but then noticed I still hid.

He nudged me, making me look up at him.

"Delyia, are you ashamed?"

"No no no! I'm not _ashamed!_ It's just embarrassing!" I hastily retorted.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about. If it weren't for you entertaining stories, I probably would've been in stasis much longer. Complete boredom would've kept me in that state. I thoroughly enjoyed every second you spent telling me about your life. I wish I had more to tell you about mine, so that I could entertain you. However my life has been centered on this war for so long, I do not remember much of my past life." He sighed.

I laid my hand on his cheek. "It's nothing to be upset over, Optimus. You entertain me by just sitting with me." I laughed, but it quickly died as I thought of the week and a half without him.

"I missed you." I sighed, laying my head against him.

He hummed, his body vibrating. "I confess I missed you as well."

My heart soared, and I bit my lip to keep from laughing; I knew I'd remember this forever. Optimus Prime _missed_ me.

"However, I must give you my deepest apology." My happiness deflated for a moment. "I feel extremely guilty for the past week, all the sadness you've endured because of me. It wasn't fair to you and –"

I held up a hand to stop him, "Optimus you don't need to apologize; it wasn't your fault. You were doing what needed to be done but – " I smiled, "- it would be great if you could be more _careful_ next time."

"I swear to you I will be more careful."

"That's all I can ask for, my friend." I laughed.

We sat in harmonious silence until my stomach growled, signaling lunch time; and as if hearing my stomach, Sam called for me; telling me he had my food. I looked at Optimus and he understood, standing up and walking to the hangar. When we were a few feet away; he set me down, and I looked up at him and smiled; he returned the gesture.

"Delyia, I have a confession." He stated.

I nodded, "All right Optimus, you can tell me."

"I must admit to you, that I care about you a great deal. Although I'm not entirely sure as to why, nevertheless I do. I felt that it should be made known."

My faced flushed a deep red as my stomach did somersaults.

"I –I care about you, too, Optimus; a lot." He nodded and I turned to get lunch with Sam.

And the rest of the day I felt as if I were on cloud nine, his words resonating in my mind.

_I care about you._

**Btw i'm so sorry this chapter is sooo short. :) I thought it should only reveal a little bonding between the two. more to come very soon! I assure you all! ~**_  
_


	15. Chapter 15

**Hello all! :) Thanks for everyone that favorited, followed and reviewed. I love you all! (: AAND of course a SPECIAL thank you to my beautiful Beta, Bee4ever. Gotta love her, give her props guys! :) Here's my next chapter, I hope you guys enjoy the little scene, i'm doing the 'overdone' carwash but with my own little twist, all thanks to Bee4ever again. aha~**

**ENJOY~**

Over the next few days, everything was back to normal; or at least as normal as they can be with gigantic robotic organisms. I returned to my 'jobs' around base; and Lennox expressed how happy he was that I finally decided to return to my chores. I had lunch with the Autobots and started to learn more about Sideswipe. Imagine a football quarter back with a superiority complex; that's him. Minus the fact that Sideswipe had more brains and was a tiny bit more likeable than a human like him. Nonetheless, like all the other Autobots, even he grew on me after a few days. Everything was the same as before, peaceful and quiet. And I was enjoying it.

Leaping from my bed, I quickly prepared myself for the day; then ran down to breakfast in the mess hall. I met up with Sam, Mikaela, Lennox and Epps as we all chowed down on the usual fare the cooks prepared for us. Apparently, Lennox was getting leave soon so he could _finally_ see his little baby girl he always raved about, Epps planned on visiting his own family soon; both within the next month. This spurred a thought deep in my brain; it was nearly the middle of August now, and I was still in High School. That meant school would be starting up in the next three weeks, and I would have to _leave._ The moment it crossed my mind, my stomach dropped and all appetite left had vanished. Could I leave my Autobot friends for _school?_ It felt so wrong, now that I was introduced to this kind of life, to be thrown away from them over something like school. I tried to shake the thought off, but it continued to bother me throughout the day as I completed my chores.

Lunch time rolled around; and my appetite still hadn't returned, so I headed to the hangar early. None of the Autobots were around except for one; Sideswipe. I approached him and smiled.

"Hey 'Sides. How're you hangin'?"

He glanced down at me and chuckled; "Doin' just fine pretty lady. Couldn't stay away from my beauty too long could ya?"

I threw my head back with laughter, "Yeah 'Sides;" I replied, after the laughter subsided. "I definitely couldn't stay away from a hunky Autobot like you, for too long."

Sideswipe smirked; "I knew it, just don't let the boss hear ya sayin' stuff like that to me, he'll get cra-"

Bee rolled in, interrupting the silver Autobot. I turned to Bee and grinned as he transformed. The yellow bot chirped happily as he snuggled his head up next to my body. I giggled and rubbed his helm.

"Hey Bee, how are you?" I smiled at him.

He chirped in response as Sam and Mikaela entered the hangar. I turned to 'Sides, in hope of finishing our conversation but he was gone, tearing up the road, dust billowing up behind him. I'd have to remember to ask him about it later.

Lunch continued without any problems; however Optimus was nowhere to be found, and my chest tightened at the thought of his disappearing again. _He's busy with work._ I told myself. _He's the Autobots' leader, he can't be around all the time. Relax._ I calmed down, and finished my work quickly; getting done before both Mikaela and Sam. One of the soldiers came and found me soon after; saying Lennox wanted to see me in his office. I dashed to his office, wondering what was so important. When I arrived he ushered me in and sat at his desk.

"Now Delyia; I understand you've finished your chores early?" He asked.

I gazed at him in amazement. "How'd you-"

"One of the soldiers saw you hanging around the Autobot hangar, even though all the Autobots are all out training right now." He smiled.

"Well yeah; I'm done with my chores." I nervously replied.

"I was thinking; the Autobots haven't had a good wash in a long time. Maybe you could help us out? We're understaffed right now with all our soldiers taking leave to see their families, and we could really use the help. You can even wait untill Mikaela and Sam are done and have them help you."

I nodded slightly. "Uh, sure. By the way, when did all the Autobots get repainted? I don't remember them ever leaving to get it done?"

"Well, they all had it done while Optimus was out; and Optimus got his specially done by Ratchet one day while he was knocked out. The paint was chipping anyway. Back to the subject at hand – "

"Yeah; I'll do it." I smiled. "But I am going to wait for Mikaela and Sam."

Lennox smiled and nodded; "Great! I'll have some soldiers get everything set up for you. Thank you Delyia."

I grinned "No problem." With that I retired to my room to take a cat nap.

Groggily, I stood from my bed and changed into some old clothes. Mikaela had woke me up a few minutes earlier; saying she and Sam had finished all their work. I ran to the hangar to find all the Autobots lined up outside and the supplies nearby. The hose had been started already and Mikaela and Sam were playing around. I skipped up to them; and was nearly sprayed with ice-cold water.

"Hey guys! Chill!" I laughed and Mikaela sprayed the water over me before dropping the hose.

"I'll get you for that!" I jeered, "ANYWAY; I think to be fair, we should write the Autobots' names, and put them in a pile; each of us taking one till all of them are gone."

Sam gasped, "You're a genius!"

I snickered; agreeing, before we proceeded to write all of their names down. We ripped up the paper putting them into a big pile.

"Who should go first?" I looked around at Sam and Mikaela.

Sam just dug his hand in and pulled one out; Mikaela did next, and lastly I did. We continued to pull out names until Sam and Mikaela had 3, and I had two. I smirked; _less work for me_. Sam complained about having too much work, however he quickly shut his mouth after receiving a death stare from both Mikaela and I. We all looked at our names, and it went like this: Mikaela had Optimus, Skids, and Ironhide; Sam had Ratchet, Mudflap and Jazz, and I had Bumblebee and Sideswipe. _Great; _I thought, rolling my eyes. _I, of course, got the one hotshot slash pretty bot of the group._ We all announced the names to our Autobots and I felt a little deflated I hadn't picked Optimus' name. I'd just have to give the Autobots another wash soon. I walked up to Bee and grinned;

"You ready BeeBee?"

He happily chirped in response, as I grabbed a bucket full of water and soap. I soaped up the sponge and got to work. I cleaned in between everything I could find; Bee would chirp when I got to some parts; and I'd stray away. Others; he'd hum and I'd soap them up a little longer. He was like a kitten being scratched behind his ears. I hummed along to a song as I finished waxing Bee; he hummed.

" – I'll be back – "

I howled with laughter as he drove away, Sideswipe pulling up beside me.

"Don't miss any spots honey bee or else I'll hurt ya." He snickered and I slapped his hood.

"I'll do what I want; I'm doing _you_ the favor here, pretty 'bot." I smiled.

"Ooo, feisty." He purred and I made a disgusted noise.

"You're so gross." I mockingly teased. I overheard the Semi's engine roar; and Mikaela squeaked in surprise.

I glanced back, but returned to getting ready to wash 'Sides, then an idea struck my mind.

"Hey 'Sides; can I play some music through your radio while I wash you? As a favor to the girl that's about to make you shine." I grinned.

He was quiet for a moment before he popped open his driver side door,

"Sure why not. Just no kid stuff okay?"

"I can make no promises." I smiled as I hooked up my iPod.

I played my favorite playlist, humming along to the songs as I washed 'Sides. After a while I started to sing along, Mikaela singing along too; Sam was glancing at us in amazement.

"_We are never ever ever, We are never ever ever ever getting back together. We are never ever ever ever getting back together, You go talk to your friends talk and my friends talk to me, but we are never ever ever ever getting back together_." I laughed and continued to Sides' rear, swiping all the grime and dirt away, as another song came on.

"Don't take advantage of my aft, girlie." He snickered; and I threw the sponge at his rear view window.

"I quit." I stuck out my tongue.

"You can't quit! I'm not clean!" he whined; and I gave in, continuing to wash him.

"_You've had one too many second chances, and I can't wait around for you to make up your mind. Without a second glance, you left me stranded; I climbed, I slipped, I fell; but at least I tried. if you turn your back, I'll burn that bridge. _"I hummed, singing in my head; slipping up every once in a while.

"Time to wax!" I laughed; starting to wax the diva, tapping my foot the rhythm of the song that played.

"_I don't ever wanna let you down, I don't ever wanna leave this town, 'Cause after all this city never sleeps at night. It's time to begin isn't it? I get a little bit bigger but then I'll admit I'm just the same as I was, don't you understand?"_

I finally finished and looked around, all the Autobots were before us in their altmodes; shining and sparkling as if we just bought them from the dealerships. I stood proudly next to Mikaela and Sam,

"We did good guys, we did good." I snickered and gave Mikaela and Sam high fives.

The Autobots transformed, admiring themselves.

"This is the only time I'll say it; but good job younglings. I don't think we could've done any better." Ratchet murmured.

I gasped; and turned to Jazz. "Was that a compliment?"

"Sure was." He gasped mockingly; both of us looked at Ratchet.

"Ratch, are you sure you didn't swallow any of that fluid?" Ironhide asked, looking at him with mock disgust.

Ratchet grumbled and said something about the med bay before he trudged off. The twins sniggered and patted us _fleshlings _on the head.

"Y'all will have t'give us washin' jobs more often now! I like this clean feelin!" Mudflap grinned.

"Don't count on it!" I laughed.

"If it's any consolation, I enjoyed being washed today. I would certainly like to have this done more often. It's very _relaxing._" Optimus stepped in; and my face was dusted with specks of pink and red.

"W-Well I mean, I guess – "

"You can count on us to wash you guys at least twice a month." Mikaela smiled, saving me from embarrassment.

Optimus nodded; and all the Autobots returned to the hangar. Sam followed suit; but Mikaela kept me behind.

"You know; I was talking to Optimus today." Mikaela whispered to me so none of the Autobots could hear. "He seemed kinda angry when you and Sideswipe seemed to be messing around."

I looked at her with surprise; "What do you mean, messing around?"

"You know, mock flirting and stuff."

"_Why?" _I asked, oblivious to the point she was trying to make.

She sighed; nearly falling over with irritation. "What do you mean,_ why?_ Why else would someone be jealous?"

"I-I don't know." I muttered, trying to avoid what she said next.

"I think Optimus cares about you."

"Of course he does, he told me himself!" I replied.

"No, I mean as in, _likes you._"

"W-"

"No Delyia; I mean as in more than a friend. Do I really have to go all middle school translation on you? He _likes _you more than a _friend_."

I blushed furiously; "What are you talking about?"

"And I think you like him too."

"W-well, I – "

**All credit for the songs used go to whomever owns them, i only borrowed them for the chapter i own NOTHING~!**

**Songs used:**

**We are never getting back together - Taylor Swift**

**Bridges - Courage My Love**

**It's Time - Imagine Dragons**

**{I recommend looking up the songs, they are fantastic} Review for me lovelies, let me know what you think! (: THANK YOUUU!**


	16. Chapter 16

**So, i took a quick break last night from my homework and quickly wrote this little chapter for you guys, I was getting a headache from all the school work so (: Here's a baby chapter to keep you guys going. Thanks to all that reviewed and understood last chapter you three are awesome. Everyone say thank you to the lovely Beta that made this chapter happen, Bee4ever. & Now;**

**Enjoy~**

Her words echoed through my head; _he likes you._ My heart was a rock, sitting in my chest. _Did he like me? I don't think so. That's not possible, he's an Autobot, a machine and I'm a, I'm just a lowly human being. Just flesh and blood; nothing spectacular like the Autobots; intelligent organisms with mech qualities and abilities that surpassed anything the human race possessed. _I sighed as the truth became known; he was too good for me. Not to mention Optimus was a completely different species from me. But that didn't stop my heart from beating faster, stuttering and sputtering as I thought about him.

Maybe I do _like_ him; I thought to myself, as I stopped pacing around my room to lay on my bed. Analyzing my ceiling, I thought of all the time I had shared with the 'bot. Feeling the giddiness return and smother me as I continued to mull over everything, I threw a pillow against the wall; taking out all my anger and throwing it away with the pillow. Anger hummed deep in my chest. _Why can't I be normal? Why do I have to do things that aren't_ _normal? Am I purposely making myself like this robot because of me wanting to be different; or is this real?_ I groaned and curled into a ball in my bed. _I should sleep this off and rethink things in the morning. _I yawned and shut my eyes, sleep taking over a soon after.

I awoke to a pounding headache, and the sun blazing into my room. I rubbed my head viciously, trying to calm the hammering in my head. Giving up, I grabbed some medicine; swallowed a couple of pills, and proceeded to get ready for the day. Mikaela knocked on my door after I got dressed and let herself in, and she noticed I was off.

"What's wrong?" She asked, worry etched in her blue eyes.

"Headache…" I mumbled as I started to the cafeteria.

"Are you sure? I'm sorry for pushing the subject of _him_ yesterday. I was just curious 'cause you two are always together and doing stuff." She rubbed her head sheepishly.

"That's not it, it's really just a headache, but I took medicine and it's slowly going away." I sighed as we walked in the doors.

We all ate in silence, only commenting on things like the food; breakfast wasn't long this morning. Sam, Mikaela and I started on our work early; all of us determined to finish as much as we could today. As I ran errands, my mind wandered to Optimus again, the feeling of my heart in my stomach returned, and I could hardly breathe. I almost dropped a box I was carrying when it happened. _Was there something wrong with me? _I shook it off, and tried to continue with my work. Only, things got worse. My headache went away; but when lunch time rolled around, every time I thought of Optimus, my appetite would melt away, and it would take 10 minutes for it to return. Now I was worried; and I decided I would pull Sam aside after lunch to talk to him about it.

The end of lunch came too quickly; and I almost didn't grab Sam after we finished eating, _almost. _Sam listened as I explained my situation to him, and how I was feeling; a small smile ghosting his lips.

"Why are you smiling?" I asked as I finished.

"D, how do you not see it?" He smiled even bigger, before pulling me into a hug.

Confused, I pushed him away. "What are you talking about?!"

"You really like Optimus." He snickered. "Although I have to admit it is a little weird, considering he's a gigantic alien robot, and you're a human being; but I knew you wouldn't wind up with someone normal."

I gazed at him in shock. Hearing the words from Sam's mouth hit me like a ton of bricks. So I _did_ like him; and I liked him a lot.

"What do I do?" I asked, barely speaking above a whisper.

"Well," Sam thought, "I don't know. I think you should mull over your feelings for a while before you make any moves." He almost broke out in laughter again. "I mean, I waited for _years_ for Mikaela, and I got her. I'm not saying you should wait years; but at least a little while, until you're completely sure about your feelings."

I groaned; "I seriously hate thinking!"

Unfortunately; for the rest of my work day, I was forced to do nothing but think; and it was hell.


	17. Chapter 17

**Hello there lovelies! (: So i finished my assignments early and i decided hey, why not post another chapter! So here it is! The lovely Naughtia and Bee4ever gave me the ideas for you guys being shown another 'bots POV ;). but this takes place after the whole car wash thing, it's that night when he's sitting alone in the hangar. When i switch back to Sam's point of view, it's right after he and delyia talk. Alright? Just incase someone doesn't get it because i feel like there will be one. :) ANYWAY, kudos to my lovely Beta for reviewing my lovely chapter, everyone say thank youu. (:**

**Enjoy!~**

~Optimus' POV

I sat in my alt-form, in my corner of our hangar; all the other 'bots mingled with one another, I however; was too involved in my thoughts. They always seemed to encircle two things: The War; and Delyia. This tiny human had captured my mind, my thoughts, and I didn't quite understand why.

_What are you thinking? Of course you know why, you pile of scrap!_ I mentally scolded myself, my engine hummed softly. _You care about the human._ But why? I mentally groaned; I shouldn't be focusing on such trivial things when there was a war to think about, the survival of our race, and my team mates. All of those should come first in my thought process; however, for whatever reason, my processor would have none of it. She would pop into my processor at random times; little things apparently reminding me of her. The way one of the twins or Sideswipe would speak like she would, or the way the wind blew through the grass, like it would through her hair. I would not deny, on this planet Delyia was a captivating creature; however, I gathered she did not seem to think so. I knew she held the delicate hearts of many of our young soldiers, though, I could not see her with anyone so. . . _soft._

Even the thought of her being with an organism other than me sent my spark reeling in jealousy. It hummed angrily against me; it's dominance shining through. This slightly bothered me; Elita-One could still be alive out there somewhere. It wasn't fair to her that my spark was moving on, when hers most likely hadn't. It wasn't right, and it set my processor on edge. I sped out of the hangar, driving as fast as my Earth vehicle would allow, flying through the dust and taking all the resentment I had out on the soft dirt of this planet.

I soon came to a stop by the lone tree Delyia and I once sat by, it's peaches sat bright and plump on the limbs of the young tree. I transformed into my real form, slumping against the wood and gazing up at the stars. I stayed there for, as the humans would say, 'what seemed like hours;' however, my processor recorded it as a few nano-kiks. I thought of the war, of my Autobots, Elita-One, _Delyia._ They swirled around in my processor, and my fans kicked in, cycling cool air to calm me. I knew I couldn't pursue anything with Delyia, not with being so deep in the war, not with my Autobot brothers depending on me so heavily; _not with Elita-One possibly being out there and looking for me_. For now; I would hold on to the feelings, and be in her presence as a confidant, that will have to be enough for me. At least for now.

~Sams POV

I watched as Delyia walked away from me, her shoulders slumped; I knew she was upset. I had to cheer her up, I concluded. Running back into the hangar, I gathered all the Autobots and Mikaela.

"Look guys, I think there's something bothering Delyia," I told a white lie, I couldn't tell anyone. Duh. "So I think we should, ya know, throw her a little dinner party. We can set up a table for me Mikaela and D, the Autobots can obviously sit around us. We can eat, you guys can have some energon or whatever. We all sit, talk, eat. Bada-bing-bada-boom D's happy. Maybe we can have some Karaoke!"

Optimus looked at me warily.

"What is _Karaoke?" _He rumbled.

Mikaela answered for me.

"It's when you look at this screen and sing along to a song that's picked for you."

"I do not think that is a good idea." Optimus backed up a little.

"Oh come on! I think it'll really cheer D up! I know we all don't want her moping around right?" I pleaded with them.

Jazz and Bee nodded, the silver bot speaking up. "Of course I'm in! I gotta keep the little girl happy. She one of my favorite ladies here." Jazz sniggered.

Optimus' engine hummed. I saw him give Jazz a stare of defiance; no one else seemed to notice. I grinned.

"So? What about you, Ironhide? Sideswipe? Twins? Ratchet?"

Ironhide, Sideswipe and the Twins agreed. Ratchet said no to singing, but he'd project the lyrics and play the music for us. I nodded, taking what I could get.

"So, we'll meet here a few mintues before dinner to set everything up and bring in food, etc. Alright? This is gonna be awesome." I grinned before running back to return to my work.

~Delyia POV

My back ached, my head throbbed, and my feet felt like nubs. That's the last time I help Lennox move boxes from office to office. He left yesterday and asked me to move some boxes for him (He forgot to do it.) So I was left with all the work, lucky me. However, as I spent my day alone, my mind blessed me with thoughts of the dear Autobot leader. In the end, I decided I couldn't burden Optimus with my stupid thoughts of him, especially in this war. However, if the moment felt right, I wouldn't stop anything from happening.

It scared me that I didn't mind him being an alien from another planet; all I saw was an intelligent being that cared deeply and passionately for others. Maybe that's what drew me to him; I didn't want to dwell too much on the subject now. I got a message from Sam to meet him in the hangar ASAP after work, so I did as I was told and raced to the hangar.

When I burst in, I nearly tripped over myself in shock. The hangar was dimly lit, like one of those Italian restaurants, with little lights guiding me to a medium sized table with cream lace draped over, gracefully sweeping against the floor. Food sat on the table for three, cute paper plates and silverware laid out expertly. Sam and Mikaela stood close by, waiting to hear my comments; I could only smile and look at them confused.

"Why?" I simply asked.

"Well, it was Sam's idea, but everyone pitched in. We knew something was bothering you and you don't have to share with us, but we all wanted to make your day a little happier; because we all care about you Dede." Mikaela smiled.

Tears pricked the corners of my eyes. I noticed the Autobots finally standing off to the side, with cubes of what I assumed was energon. A smile pulled my lips up and I ran to hug Sam and Mikaela, hold them as close as I could.

"Thank you so much." I whispered to everyone, knowing the Autobots could hear.

Everyone mumbled 'you're welcome', with the exception of Bee. Like always, he chirped and clapped his hands.

"You all are the best family I could ever ask for." I sputtered out.

Ironhide made a weird noise and turned around; my gaze turned to him and I noticed his shoulder shake. I walked over, placing a hand on his leg in an attempt to get his attention; but he quickly turned his head away, trying not to let me see. I pressed on, and caught a glimpse of a light blue tear before it disappeared as quickly as I saw it. I hugged his leg, giving him a reassuring squeeze; no words were said. Optimus carefully pulled out my chair; and I thanked him as I sat. When everyone was settled, I dug into my food, my stomach rumbling happily. We all finished quickly, all of us starving; we sat for a little while chatting about random things, laughing at memories.

"This has been one of the best days I've ever had." I sighed, leaning back in my chair.

"It's no' over yet pretty." Skids grinned, and I looked around confused.

"We're going to do karaoke!" Sam jumped up and pulled me over to Ratchet. "He's gonna project the lyrics and music."

"Really?" I turned to all the Autobots, "I warn you guys I don't sing that well." I rubbed my head sheepishly.

"Doll, we're robots. Do you think we sing much better? Besides a beautiful girl like you has to have a beautiful voice to match." Sideswipe winked and I made a mock noise of disgust, both of us chuckling.

I heard an engine rumble; but before I could ask anything, I was pulled over to a wall, a song already pulled up for me.

"I-I'm going first?" I gulped.

Sam nodded; and I grabbed a microphone, my heart in my stomach.

"You'll be great;" I heard a sweet baritone hum behind me.

I flashed Optimus a smile before I started to sing,

"_There's a place that i know it's not pretty there and few have ever gone _if I show it to you now, will it make you run away or will you stay even if it hurts_ if i try to push you out will you return? and remind me who i really am please remind me who i really am_ _everybody's got a dark side do you love me? can you love mine? nobody's a picture perfect but we're worth it you know that we're worth it will you love me? even with my dark side? _if I show it to you now, will it make you run away or will you stay even if it hurts?"_ I _bowed a little, and laughed as they all clapped for me.

~OP POV

My spark hummed at the sound of her voice, it wasn't beautiful, but she could keep an audience. Her voice held something I hadn't even heard on my planet, as we didn't have much in the way of singing or music. My face plates twitched into a smile as I watched her walk next to Sam and Mikaela; she was indeed a beautiful creature after all.

~ D POV

One by one, everyone came up to sing: Sam and Mikaela did a duet called _little Talks,_ Bumblebee sang a Japanese song called Sweet Little Bumblebee, to everyone's enjoyment. (I was surprised he managed it through different radio frequencies). Ironhide wasn't a bad singer, with the song I will not bow, Jazz rapped Donald trump, and the twins rap battled , Sideswipe's rap seemed, to me, to explain him with the femme Autobots, No interruption. Then Optimus stepped up; none of the Autobots needed microphones with their speakers.

"_You know I'm not one, to break promises. I don't want to hurt you but I need to breathe at the end of it all you're still my best friend, but there's something inside I need to release which way is right which way in wrong how do I say that I need to move on, you know were heading separate ways and It feels like I am just too close to love you there's nothing I can really say, I can't hide no more I can't lie no more got to be true to myself and it feels like I am just too close to love you so I'll be on my way. You've given me more than I can return yet there's so much that you deserve. There's nothing to say nothing to do, I can't give I must life without you. You know were going separate ways, and it feels like I am just too close to love you_."

As he sang, his deep baritone lightened, and out came something deep and raw in his voice. I almost felt as if his words were mixed; as if he were speaking to me, and to Elita. I pondered over the thought, but tossed it aside; _I'm being stupid, there's no way he feels anything for me._ I shook it off as we all said our goodnights; Optimus and I locked eyes/optics, neither of us looking away for a few moments.

"Goodnight Optimus," I breathed, "You did really good tonight. Thanks for everything." I grinned.

He nodded, his optics swimming in joy. "The pleasure was all mine Delyia; Good night. And as you humans say, have sweet dreams in your stasis state."

I giggled; "You too Boss." I turned and went to my room, a blush spread deep in my cheeks.

_Magnificent._

__**Songs used:**

**Dark Side - Kelly Clarkson**

**Little talks - Of Monsters and Men**

**I Will Not Bow - Breaking Benjamin**

**Sweet little Bumblebee - i have no idea :(**

**No Interruption - Hoodie Allan**

**Too Close - Alex Clare **

**I reccomend listening to these songs they're amazing and of course i own nothing of any of the songs, :) they are used purely for fan purposes i'm not in anyway trying to take credit for anything! (:**


	18. Chapter 18

**WAH! Everyone has to give MAJOR kudos to Bee4ever because she gave me the idea for these next few chapters again! :D KUDOS KUDOS KUDOS! Thank you to everyone that favorite, followed, and reviewed, it always brings a smile to my face knowing you guys like this story enough to do something about it. (: well, this chapter is cute with a twist so,**

**Enjoy~**

~Sam POV

August 18th was her birthday; and it was _tomorrow._

_I can't believe she hasn't said anything to anyone._ I thought to myself as I walked down the hall, dinner was in a half an hour; to my delight, I finished errands early so I could laze around the base. I found my feet taking me to the hangar as I stepped through the doors, finding all the Autobots in their alt-forms. _Maybe I should throw Delyia a party, she is turning seventeen._

"Hey guys," I voiced, the Autobots transformed, circling around me. "I just wanted to tell you guys that Delyia's birthday is tomorrow and – "

"What the hell is a birthday?" Jazz inquired.

"It's the day you were born." I simply replied.

The bot said nothing else and I continued on,

"I was just thinking, maybe we should throw her a little party. She is turning seventeen and I'm not sure how girls work or whatever, but I think every birthday is important to them. I wanted to know what you all thought."

"I think that is a very well-thought out idea Sam," Optimus started. "But what kind of _party_ would you have us throw? We cannot simply take her out of base and around the city."

"Well, it doesn't have to be anything super fancy. I thought maybe we could put up some lights and just have a really nice dinner. I already had permission from Lennox and Mikaela and I went out and bought her a few things."

"It is customary for someone to receive gifts on their birthday?" Optimus wondered.

I nodded, "Yeah it is. You guys don't have to get her anything; I mean what can robots buy?"

Optimus looked down, deep in thought.

Bee chirped, " – let's get this party started – "

I chuckled, "Alright so it's agreed, tomorrow we'll have a fancy dinner. See you guys then!"

However, at the end of the day I received news that the Autobots had to go on another mission; another Autobot had landed and they needed to retrieve _her._ I never met an Autobot who was a female before; are they different? Or do they act / look the same? I shook my head, my heart beat nervously. _What if the Autobots didn't come back in time for Delyia's dinner?_ Removing the stressful thoughts, I laid back in bed, trying to fall asleep.

-D-

I sighed against my pillow; _tomorrow is my birthday._ I hadn't told anyone, because I didn't want them to fuss over it. I felt slightly uncomfortable with the idea of soldiers wishing me a '_happy birthday.'_ It felt weird, and I just wanted tomorrow to be over with. The Autobots weren't even here, and probably wouldn't return tomorrow, so it didn't even matter. If I couldn't celebrate my birthday with my family, I didn't want to celebrate at all. It was with that last thought I went to bed with a heavy heart.

The first thing I noticed when I woke up was a brightly colored card, next to a cupcake on my nightstand. Groggily, I picked up the card it was full of cars and little stick figures, all of them making car puns. Smiling to myself I read the card,

_Dear Delyia, Happy birthday I hope you have a GREAT day today. Me and Mikaela have a little surprise for you this afternoon; so make sure to look pretty! Love you sis, - Sam_

_Delyia! I love you; you're the best friend I've ever had, so I hope you have the BEST day today. Like Sam said, we have a __**few**__ little surprises for you today, so make sure you're going to the hangar for dinner today! Love you! 3 – Mikaela_

I smiled at the little notes and I looked at the cupcake, red velvet with vanilla frosting. _My favorite._ I thought hungrily. I fought against the hunger and jumped in the shower, quickly washing myself and hopping out. Throwing on clothes and towel drying my hair, I devoured the cupcake and started of work early; if I finished early I'd have time to really get ready. So throughout the day, I skipped lunch and break to finish work. _I can't wait._ I though giddily. I'd even heard news of the Autobots returning with a _female_ Autobot. This day couldn't get any better, I thought to myself as I worked away.

-O

We'd returned from our mission midday, and debriefed, all within fifteen minutes. Now all the Autobots were fixing up the hangar with little party decorations that Sam had found, Arcee the new 'bot was even helping out. So Delyia's birth date was, in earth terms, August 18th; I put it in my processor so I'd have it for future references.

As we continued to work however, my mind drifted back to the rescue of Arcee. Immediately after seeing me she relayed a message to me from Elita-One and Chromia. It explained that they had gathered we were on earth and they were coming to meet us soon. Arcee had told me she'd come early so she could pave the way for Elita and Chromia. My spark nearly exploded in joy! _my _Elita was coming to visit me! _My_ Elita was alive; and she was coming to _me._ The thoughts made my helm swell with happiness and contentment; I was finally going to be able to have my love and finish the war all at once.

As soon as they came, the feelings were swept away with guilt. _What about Delyia?_ The thought grew in a small corner of my processor. Anguish gripped me, and I felt slightly torn; however my feelings were pushed aside, and I looked at it from a logical point. Elita and I have been together for many, many cycles while Delyia and I had met under an orn ago, it only made sense that I would choose Elita over her. But then, if it was so simple, why must I feel so tormented and confused?

I groaned, focusing on decorating for Delyia's birth date dinner. _You'll figure it out_. I thought to myself as I finished up the work. _You always do_.

-D-

Humming, I skipped down the hall towards the hangar, my curls bobbing behind me. Last minute I went against all better judgment and said, _what the hell_, I put on a simple blue dress and slightly curled my hair. To me, I seemed a little on the squeamish and soft side but, it was my birthday and I deserved to look nice.

As I entered the hangar, I noticed it looked similar to the other day: graceful cream lace draped over a table, candles and silverware with actual plates sat on top. Party decorations dotted the room and streamers hung from the lights above. Along one wall there was a large 'HAPPY 17TH BIRTHDAY' sign, along with some strange symbols painted on it. (I assumed it was Cybertonian.) When I arrived at the table, delicious food was set on large plates with soda filled clear cups. I inhaled the smells; alfredo pasta with chicken, parmesan chicken, homemade ravioli, some delicious looking steak dish, and various desserts were neatly places along the table. My stomach rumbled and my mouth watered as I took in the amazing food laid out before me.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

I screamed, swiftly turning around, and almost punched poor Sam in the face; I gazed at everyone in surprise. Sam and Mikaela had dressed up the same as I, and the Autobots looked like they had gotten a wash right before this, even Epps came. I grinned and hugged everyone, and attempted to hug the Autobots. As I went to hug Optimus' large leg, he kneeled down to my level.

"Happy Birthday." He whispered to me; a blush crept up on my cheeks.

"I'd like to see you after everyone leaves, if you wish." He muttered.

"I'd love to." I nodded and returned to the table.

As we ate, everyone kept me laughing the entire time; I could barely get food down. Jazz rapped a happy birthday song for me, the twins fought over who I loved more, Ironhide sat in the corner muttering about how much of slaggin' slags they were; and Ratchet merely watched this all unfold. Sam almost choked on a piece of chicken, and Mikaela and Epps performed a rough Heimlich maneuver on him; he'd definitely be bruised tomorrow. As we all sat, our hunger subdued, we continued chatting and laughing. Finally, Sam spoke up.

"GIFT TIME!" He squealed, I looked at him; slightly disturbed at the sound that escaped his mouth.

He paid me no mind and grabbed some bags with colorful tissue paper poking out, setting them all in front of me. He sat back down and waited for me to open them. I grabbed one of the bags and read the card, _Happy Birthday I hope you like what I got! It's from Lennox and Me, - Ebbs._ I grinned and dug through the bag, they had bought me some scented candles and body wash, a few books on machines and drawing, and a twenty-five dollar gift card.

"Awww Epps! You and Lennox are so thoughtful!" I giggled. "Did your wives pick these out?"

Ebbs sheepishly rubbed the back of his head and nodded, I rolled my eyes and laughed as I moved on to the next bag. _Dear sis, I already know you're going to love what I got you; so you're welcome! ;). I hope you have a great birthday! – Sammy._ I opened the bag, finding a full seven disk set of the Harry Potter movies, popcorn, some money and a new pair of jeans. I squealed and held on to it all, a tear nearly escaped.

"Thanks Sam, you're the best!" Sam grinned and nodded.

I opened up the last card, _Dear Dede, I hope you like what I got you. I overheard you saying you were running out of a few of these a few weeks ago so, I got them for you. Love you! – Mikaela_

I grinned, tearing open the bag, inside was: some eyeliner from the brand I loved, some starbursts and mint candies, a small perfume; and something glittery. I took the object out and gasped; a beautiful mid-thigh dress revealed itself, glitter dotted the dress and spread out across it was a large tiger face. I nearly passed out, I **loved** it.

"Mikaela, you're a genius." I breathed, gazing at the dress with love.

She giggled and shrugged, "I dunno about that, but thanks Dede. I thought you'd like the dress."

"You're damn right! I love it!" I grinned, putting all my gifts away.

Bee chirped up, " – I have somethin' for ya!"

"Nah wait a minute man! We all worked on dat!" Skids spoke up.

"Yeah! I worked hard as shit on that too!" Mudflap agreed.

Uhm, I definitely helped." Jazz joined in, Bee waved them all away.

I turned to Bee in surprise, "Guys what – "

He held out something small and shiny, I took it in my hands and nearly cried. They had carved a small Autobot insignia inside a piece of metal with the words 'Till All Are One scribbled on the side. It was beautiful, and it touched my soul. _They think highly enough of me that they consider me a part of their Autobot group._

_"_Guys, I don't know what to say. _Thank you;_ this means so much to me." My voice cracked as I carefully set the object carefully in between the folds of my jeans.

"I – I also made something with Sideswipe and Ratchet." Ironhide spoke up, not meeting my eyes.

"Ironhide?" I gasped. "You really didn't – "

"Oh shut up." He grumbled and handed me something wrapped, Mikaela obviously wrapped it.

I took of the paper and my heart dropped, a small cluster of metallic robots sat in my hands: Optimus, Ironhide, Sideswipe, Ratchet, Bumblebee, Jazz, Skids, Mudflap, and even the new Autobot Arcee. They didn't look_exactly_ like them, but I knew he couldn't make me something like that, when I returned home I wouldn't be able to take it with me because it could jeopardize their safety. A few tears slipped through and I quickly wiped them away and set the precious gift on the table.

"Thank you, all of you. I can't tell you guys how thankful I am." I grinned from ear to ear.

Everyone clapped and wished me a happy birthday before they all returned to their rooms, claiming it was late. I looked at my watch, **10:35;** it was late. I yawned and stood to leave.

"Delyia," I heard Optimus whisper. "Do you still want to sit with me for a nanoklik?"

I turned to him and nodded, "Of course I do!"

I hopped on his hand, and he led me a few yard away from the hangar before he sat and I sat on his shoulder. A few moments had passed before either of us said anything.

"Delyia, I must apologize. I haven't been around and spent time with you a lot lately. Please accept my deepest apologies; I do not mean to push you to the side." My spark hummed.

"It's totally alright Boss. I get it that you have to work and junk! Ha, as long as you visit me once a while, I'll be good. Friends don't always get to see each other every day, or even every week! So you're doing pretty good." I smiled.

He exhaled, his shoulders relaxing.

"Thank you, it's very comforting to hear that from you." He hummed, gazing up at the sky.

"Optimus, will you always be my friend?" I asked, feeling as if we were children and only met a few days prior.

He didn't answer at first, he seemed deep in thought before he turned his head to me; his bright optics covered me in a bluish hue.

"Delyia, I will always be your friend. Until the day I offline I will cherish our friendship and never take advantage of it; That I can indefinitely promise." He nodded.

I smiled and did the same before looking down at my feet suddenly feeling a rush of coyness through me.

"Delyia, I must confess at first I did not know what I should give to you for your birth date. However, after I thought long and hard, I finally came up with something. I hope you will like it." He fumbled around with something.

"Optimus, I will love whatever you give me." I assured him, surprised he got me anything at all.

He held out his large hand and dropped something small and silveresque in my hands. I held it up by the chain and analyzed it. It was a small almost mis-shapen set of two rings intertwining each other. On them was script in Cybertonian; when I held them in my hands the symbols glowed a light blue. My eyes caught Optimus' optics and I held the gift close to me.

"Optimus what – "

"The rings are very special Delyia. With them I'll always be able to contact you because they bear my signature. A signature is something very special to an Autobot; so I felt that since you've given me your friendship, this is the only way I'd be able to repay you."

"Optimus – "

"Not only will I be able to find you, but I can send messages through the rings. I had Ratchet and Ironhide work on them, the technology is still a little new, but we've tested it and it works. You can send me a message through it by merely cupping it in your hands and whispering whatever you wish me to know into it. I'll be able to receive it through this." he pointed to a Cybertonian symbol on his helm.

"I don't know what to say . . . Optimus, I don't deserve this. Please take it back; this is too special for me to have." I tried giving him the rings back, but he didn't budge.

"Delyia, I've given this to you out of respect, and the deep care I feel for you. Please, if you were to give it back, I would take it as an insult." He responded.

I sighed and gave up, "Alright Optimus thank you, this is the best gift I've ever received in my life." A smile tugged at my lips as I held the rings close.

"Let's test them out!" I yelled in glee.

He set me on the ground and I ran a few feet away; I did as I was told and cupped the rings close to my lips. I whispered into them.

"Testing testing, 1 2 3, Optimus can you hear me?"

Optimus let a low chuckle and nodded, I could see the symbol on his helm glow blue. The rings vibrated and his voice seemed to vibrate from them.

"Yes Delyia I can hear you." I never saw his beautiful metallic lips move.

"This is so cool!" I giggled into the rings again.

He let a long laugh escape this time and I felt my heart soar; I never wanted this to end. We continued like this for a while, us testing the rings. It seemed like minutes, but an hour passed; and I finally decided it was time for me to sleep. I bid Optimus good night, me hugging his large hand, and he running a hand down my back. I grabbed my things and left.

-OP-

I watched her leave, and felt my spark hum happily. I truly enjoyed her presence. Every time she would leave me, I felt as if part of me left with her; like I was missing a limb. But then I thought of Elita, and I felt the tug of guilt on my processor; this wasn't fair to her, but I could not help myself. I almost hoped she would just arrive so I could distract myself with her so my feelings for Delyia would disappear. Guilt tugged hard against me; _how can you think those horrible thoughts,_ I scolded myself; and transformed into my altmode, settling into my corner of the hangar. I drifted off into stasis mode feeling just as guilty as I had earlier.

My processor stated I'd only slept a few earth hours when I was awakened by an alert; _I had a message._

"Optimus; Optimus, something terrible has happened! As we were on our way to earth Elita and I were attacked by Decepticons just a few earth miles from their solar-system. Optimus . . . Elita sacrificed herself so I could get away! I'm so sorry! I didn't want her to; but she just threw herself in front of an attack aimed for me! I cannot apologize enough; I'm so terribly sorry. I'm afraid I can't give you all the details; and I can't come to earth, at least not now. There are too many 'Cons up here in the outer reaches of space; they're patrolling, and I'm not sure why. My sinking feeling is they're still looking for me. I have to go, I'm sorry Optimus – "

The message cut off and I was left in deafening silence. Elita-One was _dead?_ No; no! How can that be? She was alive and well, merely a few hours ago! I'd received a message from her myself! My spark twisted with anguish as the thought repeated itself in my processor. _Elita-One, __**My**__ Elita-One was dead; she was offlined permanently; and there was nothing I could do to get her back._ Suddenly, rage gripped me. I transformed; and roared; energon tears in my optics, letting some of the hurt and anger out. All the Autobots transformed and warily stood near me.

"Optimus what – "

"_She's dead you glitch!" _I roared, grabbing onto Ironhide and shaking him. "_She's gone and I will never see her again!"_

Ironhide gawked, "She's what!?"

"_Elita-One; __**My Elita-One, is dead! She's fraggin' dead!**_" I bellowed; and threw him aside before storming out of the hangar, tears freely flowing from my optics.

I heard my Autobot brothers follow me out; however my rage was too strong, and I could not stop myself. I walked up to the peach tree Delyia and I sat by, and ripped it from the ground; snapping it in half, and throwing it aside. Pulling out my swords; I yelled as loud as my vocal processors would let me, before beating them against the wood over and over, trying somehow to release all the pain and agony I felt. After a few moments, my vocal processor felt raw but it didn't stop me from letting out anguished cries; and beating the tree till it was no more, then beating the soft soil of the earth. I barely over heard Ironhide telling Ratchet to grab something to subdue me. I turned to him in a blind rage and charged. He blocked my swings and punches, but he never attacked back; he only yelled at Ratchet again, and continued to defend himself. The more astroseconds that passed, the worse the feeling in my spark became; an overwhelming feeling of a rock sitting in my chest plates; it hurt.

I felt a stinging sensation in the back of my neck; and I soon felt numb, falling face first into the dirt. The pain from my spark caused more tears to fall; they glowed against the dull dirt on the ground before me.

"Why!" I cried out, still raw with hurt. "Why did you have to leave me?!"

The last thing I felt was Ironhide's hand on my shoulder, before I fell into a deep stasis state, the pain in my chest still making itself known in my processor.


	19. Chapter 19

My heart raced as I hurriedly readied myself for the day, constantly fingering the rings that rested on my chest. The events from last night replaying in my mind caused my heart to swell with excitement, and something else; something I couldn't put my finger on. I didn't care at the moment; all I wanted was to talk to Optimus.

"Optimus." I hummed his name into the rings, the carvings radiating a beautiful blue.

However, I received no response. Befuddled, I whispered his name again; receiving the same._He's probably still in stasis._ I rationalized, as I walked down the long empty halls of the N.E.S.T base. Today was my day off, as well as Sam and Mikaela's; and we had planned for all of the group to hang out today. Lennox was returning in the afternoon, so we'd all visit him then. He had passed a message to me saying that he wanted to talk soon after he arrived. When Epps relayed it to me, I felt my heart sink; _it's never good news._ I skipped the rest of the way to the hangar, trying to push those thoughts away. I pushed through the doors, and glided to where everyone was huddled; everyone but Optimus. _Weird._ I pondered as they silenced harsh whispers when I approached.

"What's going on, guys?" I hesitantly asked.

Bee hummed sadly and rubbed his thumb down my back; Ironhide just turned and walked away. I looked at each of them, attempting to put some pressure on all of them to reveal their secrets.

"Secrets don't make friends." I grumbled arms crossed.

"it's nothing; nothing important D." Sam smiled and hugged me.

I awkwardly hugged him back, and immediately changed the subject.

The rest of the day passed as strangely as it started. All the Autobots were acting strange around me; even Sam and Mikaela were acting different. No one mentioned Optimus at all today, even though I hinted quite a few times about where the Autobot leader had been. It wasn't till three, an hour before Lennox was supposed to return, that Optimus made his appearance. He strode in the hangar, optics fixed forward, never straying from their path. I grinned wildly and ran up to him.

"Optimus - !"

He however, continued his stride; never faltering, as if I wasn't there; as if I'd never spoken. Taken aback, I watched him plow out of the hangar, and outside. Slightly flustered; I trailed him outside to where he now sat by a broken tree, gazing up at the cloud-less sky. I silently crept up next to him and set my hand on his leg.

"Optimus, what's wrong?" I said softly.

"Nothing" he replied; his optics not once meeting my eyes.

One word, a simple answer. An answer that one gives when they don't want to talk about what was really bothering them. But I would not have it. No, not when we are friends; friends share, and friends help. _Fuck that._

"Don't lie to me." I warned.

His optics flickered to me for a moment.

"Don't concern yourself with things you'll wish you hadn't."

Taken aback, I inched away from him; why was he being so mean?

"What? Optimus, we're friends. I don't care what it is! I know that if you trust me to tell me what's bothering you, I'll honor that and never _ever_ wish I hadn't wanted to hel-"

"Stop. Delyia please, just don't." He groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Rage flared up inside me; swarming in my chest, filling it with a bubbling, sizzling, hissing rage that I couldn't tame. I felt my eyes narrow, and words escape my lips."What the hell, Optimus?! All I ever do is try to help you and be there for you. All I ever try to do is be a friend to you; and yet you're so ungrateful! You just push me away, or fling me to the side. You do what you please, and when you feel like it, you come to me to vent; then drop me again! I'm tired of you doing this to you, and to me! We're friends, are we not?" I hissed, but he never spoke; not a word. His optics stayed fixated on the ground, and never moved. The rage sizzled, hurt rearing its ugly head, bubbling in my chest.

"Are we friends?" I asked again; I received the same response.

Finally, I screamed. I kicked and slapped and punched, all the while screaming till my throat was surely red and raw. Optimus at first was shocked; and flinched, but as I continued, he sat and watched me as I continued to uselessly beat him. A few minutes of my tantrum passed and I stopped hitting, and replaced it with soft tears. As they cascaded down my cheeks, I looked straight into his optics, hoping my hurt shone through the tears.

"If we aren't friends, then everything I did up to now was for nothing!" I harshly whispered.

"Delyia, we are anything but friends." He murmured in his sweet, well now it seemed anything but, voice.

I felt my heart tear itself apart. I grabbed the rings around my neck, and yanked at them as hard as I could; the chain snapping. I threw them to the ground in front of me,

"Then I won't need those, or you, _ever again._" I sneered.

He opened his mouth to speak, but I was already running back to the hangar. I ran past everyone, never stopping, till I reached my room. Slamming the door shut and locking it, I threw myself onto my bed before I completely dissolved into tears.

-OP-

I watched her as she fled from me. If my spark would've been gracious, it wouldn't have let me feel at all. However, luck was never on my side, and my spark tormented me even more with guilt, sorrow, and anger.

"Can't you tell?" I whispered to her. "I cared for you more deeply than a friend should. And it was because of those feelings that I was punished, and Elita paid for it with her life. It was unfair to me, to her, and especially you, Delyia," I sighed. I couldn't bring myself to think it; let alone say it.

I turned and slumped over, the glittering rings laid next to my hand in the soft dirt; the image of her face, how much hurt and betrayal shone on the surface, burning in my mind. This was all my fault.

**Merp, so I had to put this at the bottom :( that's what I get for uploading it from my phone hah. Well of course say a big thank you to bee4ever :) my lovely beta. And thank you from me to you for all of you that followed favorite and review this it means so much to me. Thank you so much -sofia**

**I hope you all enjoyed this chapter ~ **


	20. Chapter 20

**GAH! I am so sorry it took so long, school has been nothing less than absolute chaos since i've started. Now that we;ve gotten into the rhythm of things i'm hoping to pump out 2 to 3 chapters a week! Don't worry i have NOT forgotten about my story! It's one of the most important things i have going right now! so let me know what you think about Delyia / Optimus' relationship at the end of this. I think it's well paced. love you all!**

**Enjoy!~**

A day had passed; I avoided him at all costs. The hangar wasn't an option for me to go to anymore, and Lennox made it easier on me by giving me jobs that weren't too close, so I wouldn't have to accidentally face Optimus. Mostly I would hang out with Mikaela in other parts of the base. Sam would visit too, but he took the bulk of the work, and the 'bots I did want to see would find me and be with me. On one hand, I felt horrible for the Autobots; I felt that I was making them choose between their leader and I; then again I thought about how terrible he had been, and all remorse washed away. Secretly however, I wished Optimus would seek me out and try to apologize. I'd reject him of course, but it felt good to know that he regretted his actions towards me.

I received no such luck during the day. It was nearing six, and the sun was setting giving everything a light orange and red hue. I started towards the mess hall when Sam ran up to me.

"I have a surprise for you!"

I eyed him warily, "What kind of surprise?"

He shoved a scarf in my hands, and I searched his face for an explanation.

"You do know it's the middle of summer, right?" I lightly chuckled, and he shook his head.

"That's not the surprise; tie it around your eyes! Where I'm taking you is a secret"

"That's a little suspicious to me Sam; you're not going to make me do anything I don't want to right?" I hinted at the possibility of him taking me to see Optimus.

He shook his head no. "Trust me; I'm not doing anything you don't want to do yourself."

Trusting in him, I blindfolded myself, and allowed him to lead me down the halls of the base. I heard doors opening, and some shuffling and clinking, before all was silent. Sam's hands left my shoulders, and I was left to stand alone, in the middle of God knows where. He ran back to me a few moments later, whispering to take off the blindfold in five seconds, and then he was gone again.

_5. . . 4. . . 3. . . 2. . . 1. . ._

I untied the blindfold; it fluttered and spilled onto the floor. Blinking rapidly; my eyes adjusted to the light, and with a shocking realization; I knew exactly where I was. The hangar itself was empty of my Autobot friends, save one; and he was the last person I wanted to see. The Peterbilt transformed into Optimus, and he knelt in front of me, laying his hand out for me to get on. I resisted the urge to look into his eyes, for I knew if I did, that would be the end, and all the anger I felt would diminish as quickly as it had returned. I needed to stay strong; I needed to show him that he couldn't toy with me anymore. If we weren't friends, then why should I care about what he does anymore? It seemed almost childish, now that I really thought about it. What's the point in being upset? **No.** I quickly shut down the conflicting thoughts, and turned away from Optimus. My feelings matter, and I was wounded.

Not only was I wounded, I was _deeply_ scarred. Optimus had scarred me; he's the second friendship I had ever put so much work into. He'd hurt me twice, and each time he'd gone back on his word not to hurt me. I couldn't put up with it anymore; I had been hurt too much in the past for me to go through it again.

"-Delyia? Please." It was only then that I'd realized he'd been talking to me for some time.

"What?" I hissed, still not looking in his direction.

"Delyia just hear me out; please, I'm begging you."

"**Hear you out?** Optimus you've got to be joking!" I whipped around, staring the giant robot down.

"I _tried_ to hear you out yesterday! What did I get in return? Huh?! What did I get in return?! Nothing but a bullshit answer, and a lot of hurtful words. You've wounded me for the last time Optimus, I swear to you, I won't let you do it again! This isn't fair to me; I can't be the only one who tries!" I bellowed; and started out of the hangar.

"Delyia. . " His voice wisped into my ear, I could feel his resolve cracking, and the deep anguish and hurt he felt.

It almost made me feel bad for what I said; _almost._ I unwillingly turned, and looked at him; for I am not without mercy. I stood and waited for him to continue.

"Delyia, I – I know this is hard on you, but its hard on me as well. When you came to me yesterday, the wounds were too fresh; I was too vulnerable, and I lashed out at anyone who was nearby. Unfortunately for you, the one I care for most was the one that I'd hurt. If I could take it all back, I would do it without a second thought. Delyia; my processor, even worse my spark, cannot bear the thought of you not being in my life anymore. Delyia – Please, I care for you deeply. You're one of my dearest friends on this planet, you must forgive me. I beg of you."

With each passing second, it became more and more apparent that his despair had tormented him all through the night and day. I felt my heart break into little pieces, it's pieces fell from my chest, and cut it open; leaving me feeling raw and hurt. How can he get to me so easily? How can one apology make me change from anger, to sorrow and longing? It wasn't fair that he had such a hold over me, and never even realized it. This is getting out of control, I bitterly thought as I analyzed Optimus, his soul laid bare in front of me. I could see pain pour from the depths of his optics, and hurt shone through his locked metallic jaw. Maybe – _No, he's hurt you he deserves to suffer. _I fought an internal war, logic and emotion sought control over my mind and I squeezed my eyes shut, attempting to shut everything out that I'd just learned. He needs to learn, I thought angrily.

"Optimus, I appreciate your apology. It brings me no happiness to tell you this at all. Trust me, if I could take back the other day, I would, so we could continue to be as close as we were. However, we can't take back what happened, and everything you said is still burning through my mind. We can only move on from here and hope it doesn't happen again. You, Optimus, have completely destroyed the friendship we had, and it hurts me to know that I might not be able to trust you like I used to. You can gain my trust back, but you have to start from ground zero, and build your way up again. Besides, before your tantrum, I was going to tell you this: I'm leaving the base soon. Lennox has orders that now that the Decepticons haven't been seen for a month or so, it's safe for Mikaela, Sam and I to return home. Not only will we have to rebuild a friendship, but it will be long distance. We won't be able to talk often; we won't be able to see each other, and it'll only make things harder on both of us." I sighed, and waited as he took in the information.

"This may be true. But, I am willing to try." He hummed, sitting down before me.

My heart soared, and I fought to keep it grounded to the earth. Nodding, I contained the smile I felt rising, and crossed my arms.

"Well I guess that's that, then."

"Delyia I do have one more thing." He shuffled around and held out a clenched hand.

"If you would allow me, I would like for you to take your birthday present back." He opened his palm, and the chain of the necklace had been mended, the beautiful glowing rings vibrated with energy in his outstretched hand. "Consider this the official start to our new friendship."

Hesitantly, I grabbed the chain, and clasped it around my neck.

"Beautiful." Optimus sighed and ran his large thumb down my back.

I blushed a deep red, and offered a small smile; Optimus returned the gesture.

"Well, I guess that's that then. You're lucky I care about you, tin man." I huffed; his smile grew.

"In more ways than you know, Delyia."


	21. Chapter 21

**Bah! Sorry guys here's chapter 21 and edited by the lovely Bee4Ever! Everyone give her kudos! Haha, sorry this chapter is short and sorta lame but I'm going to redeem myself next chapter! I love you all, thank you for all the reviews and favorite and follows!**

**Enjoy ~**

"Guys, we're leaving next week!" I cried out, everyone in our lunch group turned to look at me.

We all sat in our circles, the humans in a triangle, and the 'bots surrounding us. Jazz exhaled air, and Bee let out a small whimper; none of us were happy. When would we see each other again? All of us held such strong friendships, and Optimus and I were trying again. A few days had passed since our escapade; everyone in base had been relieved to hear of the news, and all the tension left our home. _Home. _The thought weighed heavily against my chest. Where was my home? I used to think it was with Sam and his parents; however, living with the Autobots, I'd never felt safer and more comfortable than I had with them. It was all too much.

"Let's not dwell on it too much." Optimus sighed, gently rubbing my back with his thumb.

"How can we not?"I questioned, moving away from his grip. "We're_ leaving;_ that means we'll be gone, forever! We won't ever be able to see each other again, and then all of you will forget about us!"

Jazz and Bee jumped up, Sideswipe behind them.

"How can we forget about you, dumbass?" Jazz retorted and stomped over to me, the ground shaking in the process.

Bee and 'Sides backed him up, making noises of agreement, I remained silent, so Jazz continued.

"I think I can speak for all of us, including Ratchet; even though he'll never admit it, that you three are our closest allies on this planet. We'd trust you over any other organism that lives here. Don't you worry your little ass at all! We will always have a special place for you in our sparks, as you would say."

Bee chirped, "You're my number one"

A smile spread, stretching my lips so far I felt them crack; it was a comfort to know they'd never forget me. I knew I couldn't ever forget them.

"We should do something special!" Sideswipe grinned.

"Like what?" Sam asked.

"Well, I don't know. Aren't you humans usually the creative ones?" 'Sides retorted, crossing his arms with a huff.

Sam shrugged, "That's not me, it's all Delyia."

All eyes turned to me, and I felt my face flush.

"What the hell, man." I stuttered and looked at my feet.

_Shit, I can't think of anything._

"I got nothing." I sighed.

"What about if we went camping, or something?" Mikaela asked.

"Oh yeah, a bunch of 30 foot robots galumphing around in a forest? No one would notice!" Ironhide snickered.

"Wait, that might not be a bad idea! You guys can really see what it's like on earth! I say this weekend we all go camping on base! The base is definitely big enough; and there is probably some remote forested area we can borrow!" I clapped and squealed, it was perfect.

"Alright, alright." Optimus sighed.

"I'm bringing some high grade." Ironhide groaned and slunk away.

After Ironhide left, everyone laughed, and agreed to send me to ask Lennox.

"Why is it always me?!" I groaned, trudging into Lennox's office.

His desk was piled with papers. I could barely make him out behind the enormous stacks. Tip toeing around the flood of papers, I managed to reach his desk, huffing and panting.

"Lennox! Finally! What's going on with all these papers?" I panted out.

"This is all in a day's work, Delyia. What's wrong?" He questioned, glancing my way once.

"Well, I was wondering if we could go camping, on base of course! Maybe this Friday before Sam, Mikaela and I leave base for good." I twiddled my thumbs awaiting an answer.

"Well," he hummed, "I can't go, and neither can Epps, but you're more than welcome to go!" He smiled, before returning to paper work.

Shell-shocked, I nodded, and walked all the way down the hallway, and to the hangar. I rushed in, heart beating and screamed; hugging everyone.

"I guess that means yes?" Sam grinned, and I nodded in reply.

"Yup! We all go this Friday and Saturday, then Sunday we get packed, and Monday we leave!" I sighed.

"Well, I guess we should get ready then, tomorrow is Friday." Mikaela took my arm and walked to our rooms.

I couldn't wait; this weekend needed to be perfect.

The rest of the day passed in a blur. The day was all work and preparing for our trip. The base staff had been kind enough to lend us some of their supplies, like a tent, lamp, bug spray, rope, some cooking supplies, and more. Friday finally came, and with a rush, we hurried through our trivial jobs, and packed. Mikaela finished first, and stopped by my room to help me pack.

"Oh my God," She gasped; I turned to look at her. "This is like a sleepover," she said excitedly.

I cocked my head and furrowed my brow. "What do you mean?"

"You know, like, if Optimus was a guy, then you two would be spending the night less than 2 feet from each other! That could lead to things I don't even want to think about right now!" She smirked and threw my last bit of clothing into my half full duffle bag.

I scrunched up my nose, a noise of disgust escaped my lips.

"He's a robot, Mikaela. How does that stuff even work, between, you _know_ a human and a sentient mechanical being?"

"Well I can think of one way" Mikaela snickered.

Throwing up my hands, I interrupted her by slapping them over her mouth.

"No. I know where you were going, and absolutely no." I breathed, after a moment I removed my hands.

"You're always so flustered whenever we talk about him." Mikaela giggled, and took my bag.

"Whatever." I huffed and stalked out, her following suit.

We arrived at the hangar and dropped our bags off by the towering doors; Optimus stood a few yards away. He, Jazz and Ironhide were discussing something, so I hopped over to the group in the hangar. Bee, 'Sides, Ratchet, Arcee, the twins, and Sam; all huddled and chatting about random things. Mikaela snatched him up, and brought him a few feet away; I sat with the 'bots, and joined in on Bee's conversation about Earth's bug life.

Optimus exhaled, Ironhide rolled his eyes and chuckled. They're being juveniles. Optimus thought, as Jazz continued.

"I know you care about her, Optimus," Jazz stated. "Why don't you fess up already?"

"Yeah, if a dumbass like Jazz could figure it out, then it wasn't much of a secret to begin with." Ironhide sniggered.

"Yeah.. Hey! You're going to get it, dipshit." Jazz mock growled before turning to Optimus.

"Jazz, I don't think it matters at this point how I feel. Obviously, I have 'screwed up' with Delyia, and now we barely have a friendship. That is my top priority in this strange path; to at least acquire a friendship with her. Courting her would be wrong, on so many different levels."

"As the humans say, Love is love." Jazz patted Optimus on the back. "In my opinion, if you told her how you feel, it might speed up the process."

"It might, but I can't take that risk, as of yet."

The three robots walked back into the hangar, Ironhide stopped short and chortled.

"What?" Optimus and Jazz questioned.

"Optimus never denied that he's in love with Delyia" Ironhide snickered. Optimus' large hand flew over Ironhides lips.

"Shh!"Optimus hissed. Jazz doubled over with laughter.

"Optimus!" Delyia called from across the hangar.

"Your sparkmate awaits." Ironhide teased. Optimus sighed, and with a small smile walked over to Delyia.

"He's hooked." Jazz murmured to Ironhide.

"Yeah, let's just hope it doesn't get in the way of this war. I'd hate to see Optimus get hurt." Ironhide growled, _Ironhide would do anything to see his leader happy. Even if it meant doing the impossible._


	22. Chapter 22

**Hello my patient readers and followers! I'm not dead, obviously, but I do suck at posting chapters! I have no excuse other than school and a play but, i hope you enjoy this chapter. With the hurricane i'm hoping to get this arc finished before the start of school again! Thank you again, for all the followers, reviews and favorites! it means the world,**

**Enjoy~**

A cacophony of birds was all that could be heard; the bodies of three lay strewn across a forest floor. With a groan, one female twitched and proceeded to sit up, a headache with the force of a large hammer pounded her head. Looking around, she noticed the other two bodies. Fear struck her heart as she clambered her way to the two. Shaking them as best she could, she whispered their names trying to get them to wake up, to move, to show some sign of life. Delyia laid her head against Sam's body, listening for a heartbeat; she waited and listened for what seemed like hours but she heard one; faint and barely there, but a heartbeat had been heard. She felt for one with Mikaela and had the same luck. With relief she laid next to them, crunching the leaves beneath her, and breathed slow, trying to think.

Her heart stopped. With a sudden realization, she leapt to her feet, and ignored the searing pain in her left ankle. _He was gone!_ Frantic, she darted around the area, searching for him, trying to find her voice, but she could not utter a syllable. Chained to Sam and Mikaela, Delyia couldn't wander too far from them. Forced to return, she trudged back to the unconscious pair and felt for her necklace; all that was met was skin to skin contact. She felt her heart sink to the depths of her abdomen; Delyia knew there was no way for her to contact Optimus now. How would they find her? How would anyone?

~24 Hours earlier~

"Ah, guys smell the fresh air! It's beautiful!" Delyia grinned, soaking up the scenery.

The group had set up camp a good 20 miles from the base, deep in the nearby wooded area. To Delyia's delight, they'd found a perfect spot to set up their first time camp: a small lake with a nearby medium sized meadow, and a plethora of trees. Sam was reluctant to camp, complaining about exercise and something else. Mikaela thrived on the outdoors almost as much as Delyia was, feeling ecstatic about the change in scenery. This trip would be such a peaceful time for everyone; Delyia hoped that it would be especially so for Optimus.

Eyeing him, she watched as he strode around their campsite, curiously looking at all the things Sam and Mikaela were setting up. _It must be so hard,_ she thought, _to be the leader of something so large as the rest of your race. To be stuck on an alien planet, with no one to rely on, and constantly having to be so strong. It must wear him out._ She frowned and busied herself with random little things around camp. This weekend would be a relaxing and tranquil time for everyone; even if it killed her she'd make sure they had a good time.

An hour or so later the camp was finished and everyone was sitting around marveling at the beautiful lake in front of them.

"So what now?" Jazz asked.

"Honestly, I don't know." Sam grinned.

"Well, what do humans normally do on camping trips?" Optimus questioned.

"We fish, hike, swim, we do a lot honestly." Delyia grinned.

"Maybe we should let them in on our secret." Bee chirped.

All eyes turned to him, save for Delyia who turned to Optimus.

"What secret?" She asked.

"Ya see there, Ratchet has been working on this projection, so to speak. I'm not really sure how it works but, we can be you for a certain amount of time. We can be, human, so to speak." Sides explained.

"Let's see it then!" Sam shouted, jumping around.

"Wait wait, we don't even know if it'll work yet." Optimus reasoned.

"Fuck that, just try." Delyia snorted.

Ironhide made a whip cracking sound as Optimus sighed and nodded. The 'bots all transformed into their alt-modes and flickered their lights. Green, blue, and red hues of light melded together in front of each car, twisting and forming into human shapes. Skin appeared, and soon after, clothing melted into reality; not too long after the lights, human beings stood before each vehicle. Or a least what seemed to be a human being. Cautiously, Delyia walked up to Optimus almost unsure of whether or not she was dreaming. Her heart pounded in her chest as she raised her hand, Optimus mirroring her. He closed the space between the two and wrapped his large calloused hand around her small dainty one. She took him in: large brown eyes, beneath laid so many emotions, shaggy blueish hair, creamy beautiful flawless skin, minus some stubble, and he was tall, abnormally tall. All of the Autobots were, Bee being the smallest was just around six and a half feet tall.

"Delyia," he whispered, she felt his breath against her cheeks.

Closing her eyes she absorbed as much as she could, engraving this memory to her brain. She never would forget this day, _ever._

"Delyia." He said her name again and she was brought out of her reverie.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Shouldn't we be doing some activities now?" He replied and she nodded.

"Of course, let's do this shit." She grinned, grabbed his hand and ran to the lake.

Needless to say, the group had many activities to do for the remainder of the Friday. Delyia, Sam and Mikaela all taught the Autobots how to swim, which was an event in itself.

"Come on Optimus! A big bad Autobot leader can't be scared of a little water!?" she sighed exasperated.

"You don't understand, I'm not _afraid,_ I'm just being cautious. What if this messes something up with our holograms? What will we do then?" He questioned.

"I don't know about you, but I'm terrified!" Bee squealed.

"You can't do this!" Ironhide yelped, "I'm not getting anywhere near that death trap; no way!" He struggled to get out of the death grip Ratchet and Sideswipe had on him.

"Look, water isn't going to hurt us, I swear." Ratchet groaned and threw him into the lake, Ironhide screaming all the way.

Sideswipe held his sides as he shook in laughter.

"Ha ha ha! You're such a pussy Ironhide!" Sides laughed.

Ironhide emerged from the water with a look of death, 'Sides immediately silenced and ran in the opposite direction; Ironhide chased him around camp and when he finally grabbed him, tossed him even farther into the lake.

"That's what you get, dick!" he screamed and trudged off to the fire.

"C'mon Optimus." Delyia coaxed.

"Fine, I'll do it. But only because you've requested." He sighed and dipped his toes into the water. Nothing happened.

"Hm, this isn't so bad." He murmured and waded into the water; Jazz, Bee, Ratchet and the rest followed suit, minus Ironhide and 'Sides.

Soon after, there were water fights, dunking and much more in the lake. By the time the sun set, all the Autobots had called back their holoforms and were sound asleep, along with Delyia, Sam and Mikaela. The rest of the day would be as relaxing as Delyia thought.

~A few miles outside of the base~

"Megatron, what are we doing here?" Starscream growled.

"What did I tell you? We need to find the girl; she's the way to Optimus." Megatron snarled back. "If you don't keep your trap shut, I'll weld it together and make you shut up."

"Touchy." Starscream huffed.

"I can smell them, ugh such a disgusting and putrid smell." Megatron gagged. "Let's get this over with already. Starscream, call the others. We'll set the plan in motion just before dawn."

"Yes Megatron." Starscream screeched.

"I'm coming for your pet, Optimus. Better have her on a tight leash." He snarled to himself before transforming into alt-mode and racing towards the base. "I'm coming for you."


	23. Chapter 23

**Yay chapter 23! :) I'm surprised I can actually update more than one chapter in a week now! I have a play that i've only had a week to prepare for coming up(Plus SAT's) so, no new chapters until monday! Yay school -_- Anyway, thank you to all those whom have reviewed/favorited/followed/viewed! And of course a special thank you to my lovely Beta, Bee4ever! She's the most amazing human being ever. Just saying, **

**Enjoy~**

"Whose turn is it to collect fire wood?" Sam yelled.

"Mine!" Delyia replied, emerging from her tent.

Delyia started for the woods before someone yelled, "Wait!"

Turning, she saw Optimus in his holoform dashing towards her.

"I don't like this holoform very much anymore, it tires very quickly." He breathed.

Laughing, Delyia patted Optimus on the back. "You'll be fine boss."

"You won't be if you go get firewood alone. Let me go with you, just in case. If something were to happen, I'd be more comfortable knowing you had protection."

"Boss man, what can happen in the middle of an armed base?" She giggled.

"You never know. Just please, give me some comfort by letting me accompany you," he asked. Snickers could be heard from Ironhide and Bee's direction.

She shot them a hard stare before nodding, and turned to continue walking, Optimus falling in step next to her. They walked in silence, neither of them paying much attention to each other but to the beautiful scenery around them. Light trickled through the leaves of the trees overhead, casting a luminous glow over the brush and fallen leaves; it was almost as if they were tossed into a fairytale. Content filled her as she gathered firewood. Why couldn't every day be like this weekend?

Optimus watched as Delyia gracefully plucked little twigs from various locations; a smile played on her lips. It would be enough for him to simply watch her from afar, to witness the beauty she portrayed onto this planet. It was strange for him, to think of something so small, so vulnerable and so _fleshy_ as attractive, but Optimus couldn't help himself. Sometimes he'd let his processor wander, he'd let his spark taste a faux reality where he and she could be together. His spark would swell and crackle with care; he wasn't sure it was love just yet. But when he would be forced into his reality, he felt his spark go cold and dead, as if its life were stripped away. It was becoming too much for Optimus to bear on his own; what if he told her? It couldn't do any harm; surely she felt the same way, it couldn't be just Optimus thinking these thoughts, feeling the feelings, could it?

What if it was just him? He worried. Of course it was just him, he internally sighed. There is no way a human girl, with so many _attractive_ potential mates would choose him, an alien life from another planet. If the roles were reversed, he wasn't so sure he'd pick her either. Who was he trying to fool? Of course he would –

"Optimus? Hey, Optimus are you alright? Unless you have telekinesis, that rock isn't going anywhere." Delyia shook him from his thoughts.

Instinctively, he pulled her in for a hug; her head lay against his chest and his head against hers. He would never be able to get enough of human touch, the way two limbs could create such a spark of heat, or the softness of another's skin. It was all too good for Optimus to pass up, and to have Delyia in his arms was an added bonus. Her hair smelled of lilac and her light perfume of strawberries, adding a strange but beautiful mix into Optimus' senses. Earth sensations were something he would never understand, but never get enough of.

"Optimus, are you okay?" Delyia asked, a little worried.

Her heart raced, he was being so touchy. Not that she minded but, it wasn't him. _What do you know about him? This could be how he acted before the war, you don't know anything._ Her mind scolded her. Instead of asking more questions, she rested her head against Optimus' chest and enjoyed the contact. For a moment she could pretend she was normal, that there was no war, no alien organisms, and that she and Optimus were on a date, hiking through a forest. A date? She wondered, what would a man like Optimus do on a date?

All too soon, he loosened his grip and stared at her deep into her eyes. Delyia felt the blood rush to her cheeks as she felt his eyes analyze her countenance. She stared back, both of them locked into each other's gaze._What was happening?_ She thought wildly as his face neared hers, _Did Autobots even know how to kiss on earth? Do they even know what a kiss is? Is Optimus even going to kiss me?_ Her heartbeat steadily increased, and she almost thought it would burst straight from her chest. Optimus leaned in, and laid his lips on her forehead. Almost immediately removing them and composing himself, he brushed his hair back with a hand and took the firewood from her. Delyia however, stood frozen in place; she wasn't sure if she had a heart at the moment. She could only look at Optimus and ask silent questions.

"I'm sorry," he croaked. "I do not know if that is crossing the line here. But on Cybertron, it is a sign of affection to our closest loved ones and friends. I don't know what came over me. You have my deepest apologies, Delyia – "

She held up a hand and grinned, no words needed to be spoken. However, what she did next shocked the mech into the pit. She tiptoed up to him and laid a soft kiss unto his brow. He blinked, unsure of what to do.

"Let's go Optimus, I'm pretty sure everyone is going to be worried about us soon." She took his arm and lead him back to camp.

~Camp~

When the two arrived, everything seemed normal: the twins were fighting, Ironhide and Ratchet were trying to break them up, Arcee and Sides were off in a corner, and Bee was hanging out with Mikaela and Sam, along with Jazz. The next few seconds passed in a blur. Shots were heard, shadowed forms flew down from the sky and landed in their campsite, explosions and screams were jumbled together. Delyia was in shock. _How could they get to us on base?_ She stood, numb with anger and frustration; this was supposed to be a relaxing weekend before she was sent off to school again. Was that too much to ask for? Before she knew it, she was grabbed and thrown into a car. She landed in the back seat with a thud and scrambled to get out.

"Delyia wait! It's me, Sam! We need to get out of here, Bee's taking us away; please stop fighting me!"

When she realized it was only Sam and Mikaela, she calmed down and turned to watch the scene from the window. Optimus stood in his original form, a towering magnificent mech, and another stood a few yards away; Megatron. The name sent shivers up and down her spine, of all Decepticons to find us why him? Why Megatron? She prayed for Optimus to be safe, then she remembered the rings. Cupping them into her palm, she whispered into them,

'_Be safe, don't get hurt. Whatever you do, don't die or I'll kick your ass.'_

She sighed and lay down, shutting her eyes for a moment then letting sleep envelop her.


	24. Chapter 24

"Prime!" Megatron snarled.

"Megatron!" Optimus growled, narrowing his optics.

"Prepare for the end, Prime!" Megatron held up his gun, his stoic red optics glared straight into Optimus' blue ones.

"It doesn't have to be this way – "

"There's nothing to be done Optimus Prime. You cannot fool me with your pitiful lies. Now die!" Megatron lunged at Optimus, the Autobot dove to the right, barely missing Megatron's attack.

Spinning around, Optimus quickly shielded himself from a heavy blow and pushed back, sending Megatron to the earth. With a low rumble, the silver mech dug into the soft dirt creating a large dip in the ground beneath him. Jumping to his feet, Megatron dashed back to Optimus, wildly shooting in the mech's direction. Optimus pulled his own sword out, the tip red hot, and sharper than any other he'd ever had. The Autobot retaliated; striking back as fast as he could, but Megatron was clever, maneuvering around each blow.

"Give up Prime, you'll never defeat me!" Megatron growled and landed a hard blow to Optimus' right arm.

With a gasp of shock Optimus staggered back, clutching hid injured limb. His stare hardened as the Autobot cycled in cool air and stood straight, clutching his sword.

"I'll never back down to scrap metal like you. Today will be the end of you _Megatron!_" Optimus centered all his rage, all his hurt, all his hatred, and ran at Megatron.

He flew at his enemy, making a hard contact with metal scraping against metal. The two robots wrestled, neither one gaining an advantage on the other. Cuts, dents and broken wire covered each mech's body. Finally, Optimus managed to pin Megatron down for a moment; taking advantage of the situation, he tore the Decepticons right arm completely from his body. Megatron howled and shoved Optimus off of him.

"Starscream!" Megatron yelped.

The Decepticon flew in and landed next to Megatron. Starscream snatched Megatron's detatched arm, and lifted him up before flying off in a random direction. Optimus glared at them, knowing he could never catch up to them on foot. He turned to look on to his teammates, and saw all of them in the same condition as he. Bumblebee looked the worse for wear, with many large dents covering his frame.

"We should probably get these taken care of." Optimus looked to Ratchet.

The med bot sighed and turned to Ironhide,

"Let's start with the cry baby," he grumbled; grabbing Ironhide's forearm and dragging him away.

"Bumblebee and Jazz, the both of you search the area with Sideswipe to make sure all the Decepticons are off the premises;" Optimus ordered, and the three 'bots limped away.

However, as the yellow bot limped on, a thought occurred to Optimus.

"Bumblebee, where did Del – where did the three humans go? Where did you leave them?" Optimus called after him.

Startled, Bee jumped a bit. "Sir I left them a few miles north from here – it must have slipped my mind."

Without another word, Optimus sped off in the direction Bee had pointed, dirt and debris flying behind him.

Delyia paced and paced as she waited for one of the Autobots to come back and retrieve her. A deep panic had settled in her chest making her heart hammer wildly as if it were bouncing around in her ribcage. Sam watched his unsettled cousin move back and forth; he wouldn't deny the fact that he was suspicious. He was suspicious of Delyia and her feelings towards a certain Autobot leader, but he would never bring up the subject._Especially not in front of everyone._ Sam wasn't sure if he was okay with her and Optimus feeling 'lovey-dovey' things for one another. After all, this is his sister, not by blood but by soul. _Yes, Optimus is great, strong, intelligent, and kind, but he is an alien._ Sam thought to himself. He glanced over at Mikaela; what would he do if Delyia hadn't approved of her? More likely than not he would've dated, or tried to date her, anyway.

If he makes her happy I have to be okay with it, because if I'm not, I'm sure I'll lose her. Sam inwardly sighed and pushed his conflicting emotions aside, turning his attention to his pacing cousin.

"Delyia, would you please just sit down. I'm sure one of the Autobots will be here soon. Come on, you're freaking me out."

Delyia glanced at him, then to the trees behind her, then back at him. With a heavy sigh she gave in and slumped down next to Sam, and Mikaela rubbed Delyia's back.

"It'll be fine;" Mikaela smiled. "They'll come back and get us, you'll see."

Delyia nodded and rested her chin in her hand; all she could do now is wait. Then, a roar followed by a loud honking sound resounded in the still wood. Delyia jumped to her feet, her heart in her throat, as a Peterbilt truck sped by. The truck slammed on its breaks and turned so it faced them. Immediately the truck groaned and sputtered as it transformed into the thirty-two foot Autobot the human trio loved. Delyia let out a squeal as she ran to the Autobot leaders legs, wrapping her arms as tight as she could around his extremely large shin. Optimus set the young girl in his hand and brought her up to his shoulder, to where she jumped off and nestled herself among his wires.

A tingle, almost like an electric shock, jolted through Optimus' processor; his spark soared at the young humans touch. He wanted nothing more than to keep her close to him, so he could protect her, so he could be near her. The feel of her warm, soft, delicate skin against his cool metal sent shivers of electrical vibrations through him. In all his years, he hadn't been happier than in this moment.

Containing himself, as to not give his true emotions away, Optimus picked the other two up and set them on his other shoulder.

"I am so overjoyed you are all safe and unharmed." Optimus started back to the campsite. "Now I've already sent a message to Lennox and let him know what has happened, we are to return to base at once."

"Why?" Delyia asked.

"I assume he wishes to speak to us concerning a matter of the utmost importance." Optimus replied.

No one else said a word, the events too shocking to make light of it. They remained quiet all the way back to camp, and even then not even the Autobots joked or uttered a single syllable. Everyone knew what was coming next, and no one especially an Autobot leader and a young brunette, were happy about it.

After they arrived at camp, the trio went to clean themselves up, and the Autobots went to rest for a few hours. All the while Delyia wracked her brain for every possible reason as to why lennox would have wanted them back to early. Only one thought kept coming back to her mind; _he's sending us away._ She would be away from Jazz, from Bee, _from Optimus_ until the Decepticons left, or maybe she would never see him again. The thought was not plausible for Delyia to grasp, life without Optimus? As strange and conflicted as she felt about the Autobot leader, she couldn't imagine her life without his words of wisdom or the adventurous stories he told. Or even his soft baritone, the way his voice melted into her heart every time he spoke to her. She knew she had it bad.

Shaking it off she decided to head down to Lennox's office, everyone should've been there already. She entered the office and to her surprise all the Autobot's holoforms were there, along with Lennox himself and Sam and Mikaela.

"We were wondering if you were going to show up!" Jazz snickered, Optimus smacked him on the back of the head.

Lennox coughed and everyone gave him their full attention.

"I don't know exactly how to say this;" Lennox began. Delyia's heart raced. "Well, there is no other way to say this. . . You three," He motioned to Delyia, Sam, and Mikaela. "You three are returning home."

Delyia felt her heart being torn from her chest and stomped into pieces. _They were leaving, not in two days, but now._


	25. Chapter 25

**Hey guys! So I just realised that the last two chapters I wrote in third person POV, I didn't do that on purpose I'm sorry! But anyway this is the last chapter of this arc :,(** **don't worry though there will be two more arcs to come! Props to Bee4ever for beta-ing this entire way! everyone say thank youuuu! thank you to all of you whom have reviewed/favourites etc. ill see you guys next week with the new chapter!**

**~Enjoy**

I could do nothing, I felt nothing. The entire day, all I could do was replay what happened, relive the pain. As soon as the words slipped from Lennox's mouth, I walked out and went straight to my room. From there, I robotically sat on the edge of the bed, _the bed I'd no longer be sleeping in_, and glared holes into the floor. Inside, I was a mess, but I couldn't feel the pain. It was if a wall of glass separated my body from the pain. I knew it was there, but I couldn't acknowledge it. I knew it was there, but my brain wouldn't let me feel it. All I did was sit and stare for hours until Mikaela finally came to me and tried to get me to pack, but I couldn't do it. She gave up after a half hour of coaxing and packed for me. I could tell she was talking to me, but it wouldn't register in my mind. It was as if she were speaking a foreign language, in one ear and out the other.

When she finished packing she left again, and this time Sam came. He shook me and yelled once, but I couldn't budge. He told me it wasn't the last time we'd see the Autobots, but the thought wouldn't sink into my brain. For an hour he tried to get something out of me and nothing worked. I didn't even know what was wrong: I couldn't talk, I couldn't register information, I couldn't move, all I could do is be. _If you can call that being._ Sam left, and this time no one came back. I was alone in my room for another hour before Lennox came and told me it was time to leave. That finally rocked my foundation to the point where I jolted out of my state and started to cry. I couldn't stop the tears no matter how much I wanted to; they just poured down my face and wetted my shirt. Lennox looked at me with overwhelming amounts of pity and sorrow.

"You know this isn't what I want right? The orders come from higher up and they don't believe it's safe here or anywhere so they're sending you home. If it makes you feel better we're sending Bee home with you." He tried to comfort me.

It brought a small comfort to my shattered heart that at least I'd have some tie back to the Autobots. However, Bee wasn't Optimus and I just wanted Optimus. I wanted to be able to have conversations, to be able to touch him, to smile with him, to laugh, to be with him. I realized then how deep my feelings went for the robot. I loved him, so much so that life without him seemed dull. Yes, I could go on living, but it wouldn't be living. I'd be existing. I needed Optimus in my life; I needed him at least as a friend or confidant. As Lennox gathered my things and led me out to the SUV's, I realized how much I loved him. How badly I needed to see him one last time.

"Lennox," I asked as we arrived at the cars.

He looked at me knowingly, "You have ten minutes; that's as long as I can stall them."

With a quick nod I made a mad dash to the hangar, I flew and pushed my legs to carry me as fast as they could. I burst inside and found Optimus alone. _Someone must have taken pity on me;_ I thought thankfully as I ran up to him. The Autobot leader looked down at me with wide optics.

"Delyia I – "

As I looked into his eyes, and saw just much pain he was in I knew. I knew then, I couldn't tell him. It would only cause more stress and distraction for him; that was something he definitely did not need. So I smiled and with a heavy heart I hugged his shin. For the last time in God knows how long, he leaned down and picked me up with his large hand. Setting me unto his shoulder I nuzzled close to his face.

"I'm going to miss you Optimus."

"I miss you more than you know, Delyia." He sighed.

"I'm not gone yet." I muttered clutching onto his wires.

"To me and my spark, it feels like you're a million eons away." He sighed, then picked me up and sat me on the ground.

I looked up at him confused before I noticed his blue optics dull and his Holoform appear next to me. A tear slid from my cheek and he brought a hand to my cheek, quickly wiping it away. With a soft sob I fell into his arms, pieces of my heart clinging to him. I would be leaving a part of me here, while the rest of me tried to operate without. How could I just leave him? How would I go on?

"Delyia," he sighed into my hair. "It's time."

"I can't, I can't go!" I croaked.

With a sad smile he pulled me away from him, "I'm afraid you have no choice, as much as I don't want you to. . . You need to leave."

I held onto him, more tears coming. I couldn't move; my body wouldn't allow it. All I felt was an overwhelming amount of pain, like my body was being torn in two.

"How can you say that?" I cried out.

"It's what is best for you! No matter how much I want you to stay you must leave! It is what is safe, and that to me is more important than anything at this point."

"How do you know it's safe?! I'll be away from you! Away from the protection of base!" I argued back.

"If you're away, that means that you're no longer important to us. Then they'll leave you alone." He angrily replied, my world stopped.

"Am I – Am I really no longer important?" I didn't know if I was ready to hear the answer to the question.

A sad smile played across his lips again. "Delyia, you are the most important thing to me." He leant down and kissed my cheek before squeezing me in one last hug.

I returned the gesture, both of us clinging to one another afraid to let go. But Lennox came in and called me telling me it's time to leave. And we were forced apart, Optimus gave me a slight nudge and I walked away leaving the best part of me standing along in the hangar. As I sat in the SUV I turned around one last time to look at the base, I could've sworn I heard a cry coming from the hangar, but when I didn't hear it again I played it off as my mind playing tricks on me. I remembered the rings in that moment and whispered,

" 'Till we meet again; Good-bye Optimus Prime."


	26. Story Update!

**For all of you who don't follow me as an author, i just posted a new chapter for the Optimus / Delyia fiction in their new arc called "Difficulty" I'm going to be continuing the story in it's new arc there so check it out!**

**-thanks!**

**Sofiabarbara21**


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